Thousand Furs
by itanejiluver
Summary: An AU fairytale based on 'Thousand Furs' by the Brothers Grimm. Slight transgender-individualism but no gender bend. In the land of the Hyuga, King Hiashi promised his dying wife that he would not re-marry unless he found someone more beautiful than she was. Then, his son, Neji enters the picture...Slight Hyugacest at the beginning, eventual itaneji. Yaoi. Not crack. OOC.
1. Chapter 1

**a/n**: and…welcome to my new story! This one is based on the Grimm fairy tale 'thousand furs'. I obviously don't own the fairytale or naruto. Warnings: None for the prologue except for minor character death.

Enjoy!

Prologue

A winter storm of sleet, snow and rain raged outside, rattling the windows of the castle and demanding the occupant's attention.

Hiashi Hyuga took no notice of the storm as he sat by his wife's bedside and held her hand, his brow creased in worriment. His daughter-son stood on the other side of the bed wringing out a cool, damp cloth in an attempt to bring down his mother's temperature.

The Queen stirred faintly and Hiashi leaned forward intently.

"Don't…" she whispered hoarsely. "Don't…don't ever marry again unless you find someone more beautiful than me."

Hiashi smiled fondly at her and kissed her fingers. "Dear-"

"Promise!" the queen snarled and she struggled to sit up. "Promise me!"

Neji quickly pushed his mother back down on to the bed gently. "You mustn't overexert yourself, Mother."

The queen ignored her son and gripped Hiashi's hand tightly. "Promise," she croaked. "Promise me that you'll never re-marry unless that person is more beautiful than I."

Hiashi sighed softly; his wife's obsession with her appearance was well known throughout the kingdom, and particularly in the royal household. "Love, I promise: I shall never marry another person who is less beautiful than you are."

The queen leaned back and sighed softly before turning towards her son. "You know I love you, Neji."

"Yes, I know," Neji responded softly, touching her cheek. "I love you too."

The queen passed away a few hours later. Father and son sat solemnly by her bedside until Hiashi sent Neji away to go call the Royal Physician and confirm the death of the queen.

Hiashi observed his son with a critical eye. His beloved wife had greatly desired a daughter although she had given birth to a son. She had remedied the problem by dressing and raising Neji to be a girl, and since the other kingdoms and the country and accepted it well enough Hiashi had made no effort to stop it. It had gone on for fifteen years now, and Neji had blossomed in to a beautiful youth.

Hiashi shook his head and turned back to his deceased wife. Neji could never grow to be a greater beauty than his mother. He pressed a kiss to his wife's quickly cooling skin before calling a gruff "Enter" when his son knocked on the door.

Neji slipped inside along with the royal physician. Hiashi turned towards his son, not bothering to watch the examination; instead, he opened his arms and allowed his son to sob in to his arms. Neji had been particularly close to his mother, and she had been involved in nearly every aspect of his life and training. Both men knew that they would not have a chance to mourn so openly later in the event of the queen's funeral.

Hiashi gently patted his son's back before releasing him and cupping his face in his hands. "…You know what to do, Neji."

Neji nodded dully and wiped his eyes before gliding out of the room to sound the death toll; now, the whole kingdom would be informed of the death of the queen.

**a/n**: And…that's the prologue! I hope you enjoyed, let me know what you think and please read the next chapter if you're still interested :)


	2. The real chapter 1

**a/n**: Hello again! I hope you enjoyed the prologue…unfortunately, it took me a while to really develop the first conflict but yeah. I hope you enjoy this chapter as well! Warnings: None, just a teensy bit of foreshadowing and a weird council board, cross-dressing. Disclaimer on my profile.

I would also like to explain this about Neji-he is a guy, but his mother wanted a daughter, so she raised Neji like a girl. However, Neji isn't really a transgender individual (like, he thinks about himself like a guy and he doesn't feel like he's trapped in the wrong body or anything) but he just acts like a girl and wears girl's clothing. Also, the AU is a mix of medieval and modern and is not realistic in any way shape or form. Also, even though Neji is a boy, he is referred to as 'princess' as well as 'he'. Just so you guys don't get confused :)

Enjoy!

Chapter 1

_One year later…_

"You _must_ marry soon, you Highness!" a particularly annoying councilor persisted. "The land of Hyuga cannot run for long without the queen; you especially know of the many duties that the queen must oversee and-"

"ENOUGH!" King Hiashi bellowed. The council room instantly went silence.

"I am aware that I must wed soon. However, I will observe the proper mourning customs for this kingdom," he rumbled. "I will wait thirteen months until after the death of my wife before I consider marriage again. Do not speak of it until then!" he stormed from the room while shooting venomous glares at anyone who stood in the way of the exit.

Meanwhile, Neji hummed softly as he placed the fresh-cut vase of flowers in his father's room before propping his fists on his hips. He always made a point of cleaning his and his father's private rooms with the assistance of three or four other servants; it was good to do housework and learn a bit about cleaning although originally it had simply been to take his mind off his mother's death.

Neji flinched when the door banged open behind him and he turned around to scold the servant when he was met by the sight of his fuming father.

"Father? What's the matter?"

Hiashi's nostrils flared and he stomped over to sit in a chair by the fire. He knew full well that Neji was constantly hounded by the councilors as well; they wanted Neji to influence him to marry, who he was considering…Hiashi snarled. All they cared about was the damn marriage! He would never marry anyone more beautiful than his wife, and he knew full well that no one was. His wife had been the most beautiful woman in the world; even when she was ill, her beauty had remained undiminished. Hiashi chuckled cruelly; he would enjoy the council's efforts in order to provide a suitable bride.

Neji watched his father nervously; his father was prone to thinking aloud but the growls followed by the harsh laughter was starting to scare him. "…Father?"

Hiashi sighed and settled back in his chair. "Yes, Neji?"

Neji glanced at the other servants who looked as alarmed as he was before nodding at them. They all left quickly, not eager to incur the wrath of the king. "What…what has the council said this time?"

Hiashi tilted his head back and looked at his son appraisingly. "They were pestering me to get married again."

Neji breathed out sharply through his nose. "But-even _they _know the customs, why are they asking you now?"

"The country needs a queen, and your cousin Hinata is doing her best to fill in for the position but it's not good enough for them or the other countries. You know how powerful queens are in our world; they oversee trade between kingdoms and are our best diplomats not to mention powerful symbols of patriotism for their nations. Hinata is your cousin and a noble woman, but she doesn't have the experience to successfully keep her position for much longer."

"Hinata is trying her best, father."

"Yes, yes I know," Hiashi waved his hand dismissively. "And she learns quickly too, but the country needs a true queen, someone who was raised all her life for this job. To the councilors, that means I need to marry…particularly with the way our peace talks with the kingdom of Uchiha are going."

Neji gasped softly. "You told me that the peace talks were going well and that we would have a peace treaty in a month. Do you…will it really come to war?"

Hiashi shook his head. "I don't know, but suddenly the Uchiha have turned aggressive on us and are beginning to push our offers of peace and re-opening trade between our kingdoms away. The councilors are right though…however much I want to deny it, the kingdom does need a queen." He sighed heavily; soon, Hinata would be replaced if she couldn't get her act together and the councilors would certainly use that change to make their point.

Neji twisted his hands for a few moments before speaking hesitantly. "Well…if you don't want to marry so much, why not simply say 'no'? You're the king, after all."

Hiashi stared at his son. "Neji, I just explained to you why I have to marry."

"Then how will you hold yourself to mother's request?" Neji asked sharply. "You know that there couldn't possibly be any other woman out there in the world who is more beautiful than she was, how will the kingdom end up with a queen?"

Hiashi sighed. "Sometimes, sacrifices must be made for the sake of the country Neji."

"Father-"

"Enough!"

Neji left the room quickly before brushing a hand over his eyes. How could his father even consider breaking his promise to Mother?

Hiashi turned back to the fire and propped his feet up on the footrest and sighed as warmth filled his body. He looked out the glass windows and felt an eerie sense of déjà vu as a winter storm howled and banged on the windows, begging for his attention.

Hiashi ignored the storm yet again and thought about his daughter-son. Neji was becoming more beautiful by the day, and he would make any man a talented wife. Neji could cook, clean, keep a castle decent, and was well-learned; yes, a very good wife indeed. Unfortunately, he knew that the council was considering using Neji as a way to bridge the gap between Uchiha and Hyuga (after all, Neji's mother had trained him for when he would accept the position of the queen of a country), but Hiashi would fight long and hard to stop it; he had no intentions of handing his precious daughter over to the country that they were nearly at war with. He also had the ominous feeling that once King Fugaku saw his son, he would accept him as a daughter-in-law, war or no. Hiashi hadn't met a single person who could resist Neji's charming personality or beauty (although Neji seemed entirely oblivious to this occurrence).

However, Hiashi was also aware of the many offers from nobles that he had received from other kingdoms, as well as in the land of Hyuga. The Nara family had offered a match between their oldest son (the head of the war council) and Neji, as well as the Inuzuka clan and countless others…Hiashi shuddered as he recalled Orochimaru's proposal for one of his son's, the spider boy…Kidomaru, was it? And Neji. He had promptly put his foot down and forbidden Orochimaru and his kin from approaching Neji ever again after they had rescued Neji from Kidomaru who had tried to rape him the following afternoon. Such was the life of an eligible princess.

Hiashi snorted. Princess. To think that he would give birth to a son only to raise him as a daughter…

He tilted his head back in to his armchair and closed his eyes. He knew that Neji would come call him for the formal dinner if he fell asleep.

**a/n**: I hope you liked it! It was mostly just backstory, and I know that this chapter was pretty short, but most of the other chapters are a lot longer. Reviews make me happy and inspire me to continue on, so please review! See you next chapter!


	3. Chapter 2

**a/n: **Hey everybody! Sorry I couldn't update this week, but it won't be a common occurrence. Anyways, here's chapter two…No warnings (well, except for the council being horrible at playing match-maker) and disclaimer on my profile. Enjoy!

Chapter 2

_One month later…_

Neji bit back a grimace at the triumphant expressions of the councilors as they seated themselves at the council table. His father had announced that his period of mourning was over last week, and now the councilors were gleefully running around trying to find a suitable bride for his father. Didn't they have any shame?

Neji turned his head in mild interest when the doors to the courtroom opened and a woman with shining blonde hair entered the parlor where his father was receiving potential brides. She was very beautiful with her glittering hair water-falling down to her waist dressed in a sleek blue gown and her eyes outlined in silver with a necklace of diamonds glittering at her throat, but unfortunately Hiashi and Neji knew her identity all too well.

"We present to you Lady Ino Yamanaka!" the announcer called proudly. The councilors watched from the corner of their eyes while Neji and Hiashi stared in shock.

Ino moved gracefully towards the king and smiled a sickly sweet smile. "My lord," she murmured politely.

Hiashi gathered his wits about him and bent down over her outstretched hand while Neji stared in horror.

_Ino. They chose…Ino…as their first candidate. Are they trying to insult the memory of my mother?!_ Neji glared at the councilors, who glared back at him. Neji snorted softly; at least his father would never accept her, not to mention the fact that she was fifteen, the same as Neji, placing her as 23 years younger than the king.

After the Ino's audience was finished and she left the room, King Hiashi turned towards his board of councilors with a murderous expression.

"Absolutely not."

"But your highness-"

"I said NO!" Hiashi bellowed. "I didn't ask for a beautiful bride, I asked for a bride more beautiful than my former wife! And Ino; Ino's barely on the edge of adulthood! What on earth were you thinking? I've known the girl since the day she was born and-" Hiashi continued ranting as the councilors quivered in fear.

Neji hid a snicker behind his hand. It was going to be amusing to see who the councilors brought next to ratify the obvious mistake they'd made. Honestly, what message were they trying to send to his father?

Neji left the room unnoticed while his father was still ranting and went to go visit Ino. "Ino-chan!"

Ino turned around from her position by the window in her waiting room. "Oh…hey Neji."

Neji noted the reluctant tone to her voice. "Are you thirsty? Hungry? I can run up something from the kitchens for you."

Ino turned away from him. "No thanks."

Neji sighed, and then plopped down on the couch in front of the fireplace. It was mid-january, and despite the appearance of the sun in the sky, it was still frightfully cold. "What's the matter, Ino?"

"Aren't you angry with me?"

"Not particularly, no. Why should I be angry with you?"

"Neji!" Ino snapped at him. "Stop playing word games with me."

"Sorry," he muttered unapologetically. "No, Ino, I'm really not angry with you. I just want to know why you even bothered showing up."

Ino's lips compressed. "Seriously?"

"Seriously."

"The councilors came and informed me that they would take away my access to the greenhouse if I didn't go," Ino clipped out. "And you know how I love my flowers. I knew that your father would instantly decline, so I agreed to go."

Neji frowned. "They _threatened_ you?"

Ino sniffed a bit before coming to sit Neji by the fire. "I suppose they thought I had a chance." Ino started laughing, relieved that her childhood friend wasn't angry with her. "The fools. Your mother was the most beautiful woman in the world; who am I, the lady of the flowers, to challenge that?"

"Well, you are very pretty," Neji smiled. "I'll make sure and have a word with the councilors about your flowers."

"Thanks," Ino yawned. "I've been up all night worrying about how you two would react. Your expressions were priceless. Oh, and I like your dress, Neji. Normally I would say that green isn't quite your color, but the silvery bits bring out your eyes."

Neji tugged at his dress self-consciously. "Thanks. Anyways, I'd better get going. I have to go help down in the kitchens."

Ino smiled at him lazily and stretched. "I think I'll go with you. I'm not needed here anymore, am I?"

"I suppose not. Have you got any work clothes with you? I know that you and your father just got back from a trip from the mountains on the Rain border."

"Oh, shoot," Ino muttered. "I suppose not. I guess I'll leave you to it, then."

"You go get some rest!" Neji called over his shoulder as he hurried away.

"Take care!" Ino called. Neji raised a hand in response, but for some reason, Ino felt uneasy as she watched her friend walk away. His shining chestnut hair was tucked up in a bun and he wasn't wearing any make-up to speak of, but he still shone with beauty.

_Someone more beautiful than his mother…_

Ino shuddered before hurrying off. Hopefully, things wouldn't fall to that.

XXX

Neji hummed as he arranged the food on the platters that would be served at the dinner tonight. His mother hadn't liked it when he would come down here and help in the kitchen because it would 'ruin his hands', but Neji rather enjoyed it down here. Neji rubbed his hands together self-consciously; his skin was smooth and soft, save for a few marks from previous years and childhood mishaps.

Jerri, the cook wandered over. "It looks good, Neji!" he boomed. "Don't idle around, you've got more work to do!" In the kitchen, Neji was just another one of Jerri's workers, not a prince or princess or whatever he was supposed to be. Just a regular worker who got the exact same treatment as all of the other servers.

Neji's fingers flew over the plate of roast pork that he was arranging. He had started in the kitchen as a scullery scrubber, and slowly worked his way up through the ranks; next, he'd helped with soups and then salads and then baking and then main courses; now, he helped arrange food on the plates before feasts. The feast wasn't for another few hours, and after this final dish Neji knew that he had to go upstairs and prepare for dinner.

After Neji was finished, he washed his hand using some cold water from the tap in the side of the wall before waving good-bye at Jerri and slipping away from the din of pots and pans.

"And where do you think you're going, pretty girl?"

Neji rolled his eyes and kept on going past the delivery men who were heckling him. "You want to go for a drink with me?"

"No, thank you. I don't think anyone would be willing to go outside in this weather," Neji said coolly.

The man stepped in front of him. "Oh, come on doll-"

Neji kicked him in the stomach and slammed him down on the floor. "Stay out of the way," he hissed harshly. Dusting his hands off, he got off the poor man and left him wheezing on the floor as he set off for the stairs yet again.

Another man from the group of deliverymen standing by the kitchen door called out. "Some would say that you were prettier than the old queen, girly."

Neji paused, his hand on the railing. He turned around slowly, his eyes flashing. "Don't ever say sentence again if you value your life." He continued on up the stairs until he was out of sight before he collapsed against the wall, his heart hammering in his chest.

_Prettier than the old queen? _Impossible. It was totally, absolutely impossible. Neji stood up, dusted his skirt off, and hurried off to his rooms. It was better not to think of such things.

Meanwhile, back in the kitchen, the talk continued.

"What was up with that girl?"

Jerri poked his head out the doorway. "What's all the fuss? If you've got nothing to do than loiter around, come in here and help scrub pots!"

"Who was that girl, the one who just left the kitchens?"

Jerri blinked in surprise. "Who, Neji?"

The man on the floor went white. "Neji…as in, _Princess Neji_?"

"Yes, why?"

The crowd of delivery-men burst in to laughter. "Didn't think you had it in you two hit on a lad," a man choked out around his tears of laughter.

Jerri scowled and folded his arms across his chest. "What else happened?"

"Well, he got real mad," the man explained as he got to his feet. "Kicked me in the gut and stormed off when Darius here-" he indicated the man who'd helped him up, "told the Princess that he was prettier than the old queen. He told us not to say it unless we wanted to die."

Jerri went white. "You told him _what_?"

"That he was-"

Jerri cut him off quickly. "No, he's right. Don't _ever_ say that again, or I'll kill the whole lot of you. None of you heard him say any of that, you understand?"

"Fine, fine. But…why? Why does it matter?"

Jerri turned away. "The king won't marry no one unless they're prettier than the old queen, that's why you dithering old sod! Now, get off your arses and help my girls scrub those pots!"

The men silently went to do as they were told, feeling the full weight of Jerri's scolding on their shoulders.

**a/n**: And that horrible feeling in your stomach where you totally know what's gonna happen and you know its gonna be bad is building up, isn't it? Anyways, I hope you enjoyed, don't forget to review. Thanks for reading, and see you next chapter!


	4. Chapter 3

**a/n**: Thank you for all your reviews, gina and celestialfae!

And this is chapter 3 in which the first minor conflict peaks! Warnings: slight hyuugacest, cross-dressing (that really should have been in the warnings before…oops…) Disclaimer on my profile. Enjoy! Also, please understand that this story in no way represents my views on incest. No flames please!

Chapter 3

_Four months later…_

Ever since the disastrous audience with Ino, Neji had taken to simply waiting in the person's waiting room for them to arrive after their audience. After that, he would offer them refreshments and proceed to interrogate them about their audience. So far, no one had even come close (the closest someone had come was a man eight years older than Neji named Haku, but he too had been turned away. Neji and Haku had become close friends and still remained in touch via letters; everyone had wondered at the remarkable similarities between the two, both in appearance and in personality. Neji learned that Haku had just recently gotten married to a man named Zabuza who lived near the mountains in western Hyuga.) It had been four months since the beginning of the whole mess, and Neji knew that the councilors were getting desperate even though the threat of war with the Uchiha had long been nullified.

Neji was worried; the board of councilors was extremely unpredictable (for example, choosing Ino as the first candidate), and he wasn't sure what their next move would be. He was hoping that they would give up and just forget the whole thing, but even he could see the strain of the absence of a queen was placing on the kingdom. Hinata had managed to hang on to her position up until now, but it wouldn't be long before her sister Hanabi would replace her. Everyone knew that Hinata's impending marriage with Chouji Akimichi would put too much strain on her to continue her job. The council was capable of anything, and he was wary of what their next move would be.

Neji sighed and crossed his legs beneath the fine material of his skirt. It was late May and he had taken to wearing gauzier, lighter dresses as the heat started setting in.

Neji stood up and sighed from the pleasant feeling of his dress fluttering around him when he heard someone approaching the room. He really did like this dress; it was satin and a silver sort of lavender that brought out his own silver eyes. He'd felt in a bit of a dressier mood this morning, so he'd put a pair of silver earrings on, and some nice shoes and he'd even gone as far as to carefully put in an amethyst hair ornament on the back of his braid.

Neji raised an eyebrow when a servant entered the room. "What is it, Shusuke?" Shusuke had been raised with him since they were children, and even though Shusuke was two years senior to him, they remained good friends.

Shusuke's normal smile was gone, and his eyes had tight, worried creases around them. "They are asking for you in the court room."

Neji frowned and swept off, Shusuke hurrying along in his wake. "What for?"

Shusuke swallowed hard. "I can't tell you."

Neji shot him a hard glance from the corner of his eye. "Why not?"

Shusuke smiled then. "It would be imprudent." His smile vanished again, and he hesitantly grasped Neji's hands. "Neji…I…I hope everything goes well for you. And, I never wished this on you."

"Wished what?" Neji's heart filled with dread. "Shusuke, what are you talking about?"

Shusuke looked at him sadly for a moment before pushing the doors open and leading Neji inside.

Neji walked forward and noted the absence of a hopeful bride-to-be. "Well, what is it? What have you me for?"

Neji swallowed hard when the doors closed behind him with an ominous thud.

The board of councilors shifted uncomfortably when the prime councilor finally stood up. Neji looked at his father, who…wasn't there. Why wasn't his father at his place at the table? Neji's heart skipped a beat.

"Princess Neji. "

"Yes, Lord Tokuma."

"We have been listening around the castle, and more and more reports of the same incident have come up."

"And what is that occurrence?"

Lord Tokuma exhaled slowly before continuing on. "Patience, my lady. The occurrence is that everyone in the castle seems to think that you are more beautiful than your mother."

Neji took an involuntary step back even as the breath whooshed out of his lungs. "I-is that so?"

Lord Tokuma shook his head and took a step forward. "Your father has consented to marry you."

Neji gasped. "This is madness! You can't-"

Lord Tokuma spoke over Neji's protests. "This country is in need of a queen, my princess, and you are the only one who fits the criteria for the job!"

Neji stared at the board of councilors. "You can't do this. You-you want me to marry my own _father_?"

The board stared down at him, and Lord Tokuma responded. "We can, and we have. Your father has decreed that he will marry you, Princess Neji, and whether you like it or not, you _will be married._"

Neji fought for words. "You're mad. All of you, you're absolutely insane! No one in the kingdom will accept this, how-"

Lord Tokuma cut him off again. "I suggest you think this over, Princess. It will happen whether you give your consent." Neji heard the dull grating of the doors opening behind him, and he didn't hesitate to use the opportunity to run away from the council as fast as he could.

He kept running even when he heard people calling out his name, and the board of councilors yelling at him to stop. He didn't stop running until he reached his private rooms, only to find his father sitting patiently in his sitting room.

"Neji." Hiashi stood up and moved toward his son. Neji remained frozen, too terrified and confused to make any noise or even take a step backwards.

"Neji, please-"

Neji snapped out of his daze and dashed past his father to go hide in his room.

"Neji!" his father pounded on the door. "Neji, come out of there at once!" Neji ignored him and instead dashed over to the mirror. He stared at himself in stricken horror before snatching up the picture of his mother and comparing himself to her. He didn't think he was more beautiful than she had been, how, why…?

_HOW?_ Neji's mind screamed over and over again. _How is this happening?_

"NEJI!" Hiashi bellowed on the other side of the door. "For god's sake, Neji, open the door and-"

Neji finally found the presence of mind to form a few words. "Wait a moment father. I'm um…I'm changing."

Hiashi sighed and rolled his eyes. "Well, when you finish come see me in your sitting room." He stomped off, and Neji sighed in relief before carefully setting the picture of his mother back on his nightstand before collapsing on to the bed.

_My father wants to marry me._ Neji winced, and cautiously tried saying it again in his head before cringing. It sounded worse every time he repeated the sentence to himself. Neji took several deep breaths in an attempt to calm down before sitting up and moving over to his wardrobe. He grabbed the first thing he could find and quickly changed before taking his shoes off and slipping in to a pair of well-worn sandals and pinning his braid up in to a knot at the back of his head. He took of his jewelry and placed it back in its box before turning back to stare at himself in the mirror. He'd changed in to a plain black dress, leaving him vulnerable and plain-looking. Neji sighed in relief; maybe his father wouldn't think he was more beautiful than his mother now? Maybe he would change his mind-

Neji shook his head. His father wouldn't change his mind. He was trapped in this nightmare, and there was no getting out. He moved unsteadily out of his room and in to his sitting room where his father awaited him.

Neji cautiously poked his head in to the sitting room and squeaked in surprise when his face bumped in to his father's back; Hiashi had been standing directly in front of the door.

Hiashi turned around in surprise to see Neji ruefully rubbing his nose.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine." Neji slowly entered the room, unsure of how to broach the subject. "Um…"

"I honestly didn't expect you to react this badly," Hiashi said abruptly. "You must've seen it coming, though."

Neji stared at him, flabbergasted. "You're my _father_. Why would you want to…to…?" Neji turned red and he turned towards the wall.

Behind him, Hiashi sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "Want to what? Marry you? Would that be so bad, Neji?"

Neji whirled around. "Why would you want to marry me? It's insane and outrageous and why-"

"Being together forever, why would that be a bad thing, Neji? You would be happy and safe. Why are you against it?"

"Together forever. Together means more than one thing, _father_."

Hiashi's eyes hardened. "You will no longer refer to me by 'father'," he snapped. "Stop acting like a spoiled child, Neji. This will happen whether you wish it to or not."

"No one will accept this," Neji argued back. "No one will be on your side-"

"Everyone has already accepted it!" Hiashi snarled. "You are the only one standing alone! You know that incest is legal in this country and _no one cares_, Neji! No one cares that I'm your father! So stop fighting me!"

"I-" Neji cut himself off from whatever he was going to say and turned away.

"What? You what?" Hiashi's eyes glinted dangerously.

Neji moved towards the exit of the sitting room. "Nothing, Father."

Hiashi forcefully caught Neji by the arm and pulled him back. "Don't call me that," he hissed.

They stood at a stony impasse before Neji broke eye contact, gently pulled his arm away and hurried back to his bedroom in a quiet rustle of clothing.

On the other hand, Hyuga Hiashi stood in his son's sitting room breathing hard, as if he'd just run a marathon. He finally turned away from the open door and headed back towards the council room.

He was going to have a bride, a queen. That was all that mattered.

**a/n**: Aw…poor Neji *sniffle*. Surprisingly enough, this is the essential enterprise of the Grimm fairytale. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Reviews make me happy :) see ya next chappie!


	5. Chapter 4

**a/n**: Hey everybody! THANK YOU FOR YOUR WONDERFUL REVIEWS! *huggles* Warnings for this chapter: More extremely extremely mild hyuugacest, cross-dressing, the works. Disclaimer on my profile.

Also, do you like the new book cover? It's an itaneji by askerian, and since Neji is wearing a princess dress and he and itachi are dancing, i just thought it was perfect :)

A note about the story: I have read several different versions of the story, and there are a lot of adaptations. Just to clarify, when I say 'based on' I tend to add a ton of extra stuff to the plot while following a basic story line. The dresses and cloak will play an important role in the story (the dresses show up this chapter) but I've tried taking different things from all the different versions I've looked at and read. So, I hope this clarifies a few things and satisfies any doubts or questions for readers. I hope you continue to stick with it even though it's only loosely based on the original tale...

Also, unfortunately Itachi doesn't show up for another couple of chapters *sniffle* but you'll like him when you meet him :) Our Neji's a strong princess...he can save himself :)

Onwards to the story!

Chapter 4

The board of councilors watched intently when Princess Neji came in to view. King Hiashi approached his son and attempted to speak with him, only for Neji to hurry off again. The board of councilors sighed in disappointment; they pair was getting married no matter the wishes of the princess, but it would be better for morale if the princess gave his willing consent.

King Hiashi sighed and rubbed his temples before heading off in the direction that his princess had gone. "Give him time," he muttered. "Give him time."

Meanwhile, Neji scurried away from his father, his heart beating wildly. It had been a week since his father's proposal, and Neji still couldn't deal with it. Although, now that he'd thought about it, he _should_ have seen it coming. Everyone had been trying to warn him, right up to the last second with Shusuke. He'd simply been unwilling to believe it…

After all, even Neji had come to notice the lingering looks that his father gave him, the soft tone of voice he spoke to him, and the occasional touch. Neji shuddered as he thought back on how his father had been treating him the past few months; he was a fool. He was a damn fool, and didn't he know it!

Neji finally reached the kitchens where he instantly became the subject of curious stares (It had already been a week since the announcement; everyone was still curious how he was dealing with it, and Neji could honestly say that it was more than a little bit annoying); he pretended not to notice and immediately set to work scrubbing pots with the other girls, quickly turning the stares in to giggles with jokes and quips.

Neji looked up sharply when the whole kitchen suddenly went quiet, and then turned white when he saw his father standing solidly in the doorway.

"Would you mind sparing Neji from the kitchen for a few moments?"

Jerri slowly looked between Neji, whose hands were shaking and was kneeling on the ground, and his father who was staring steadily at him.

"Um, sir, we're very busy and-"

"That was not a request, Jerri," Hiashi said in a clipped tone. "I'll be waiting for you outside, Neji."

After a few seconds, work slowly started up in the kitchen again while Neji reluctantly got to his feet.

He nodded tersely at Jerri as he left the kitchen. "Thanks for trying."

Jerri nodded jerkily before guiltily turning back to the dough he was kneading; he felt like he'd somehow betrayed Neji even though he'd done absolutely nothing wrong, and it annoyed him.

Neji washed his hands and dried them surreptitiously on his apron before going to meet his father. "You wanted to speak with me?"

Hiashi moved toward Neji. "I was wondering if you would care to join me for dinner tonight…privately, in my quarters."

Neji blinked. "That sounds lovely, but-"

"Neji, please. 'Give me time', you said. I've given you time. Please…just, just talk to me. You've been ignoring me for a week and…" Hiashi trailed off somewhat helplessly.

Neji's cheeks colored at Hiashi's passionate confession. "I-I…Yes. I'd be delighted."

"Excellent. I'll see you in my chambers at eight o'clock, then."

Neji nodded his head before hurrying back in to the kitchen.

Hiashi sighed before heading back upstairs. It was a start.

XXX

Neji nervously ran his hands down the skirt he was wearing; he knew that everyone was going to be watching them, even if he couldn't see them. They were wondering what his decision, whether or not he had made up his mind or not.

With those horribly panic-inducing thoughts in mind, Neji surveyed himself critically in his full-length mirror. He was wearing a tan blouse over a white, knee-length skirt and brown sandals. His hair was put up in a simple low braid that swayed at the small of his back, and was held in place by a silver clip that his father had given him from a trip from a very long time ago. Neji was fairly sure that no one besides his father remembered the gift, so hopefully it wouldn't seem too conspicuous…

Neji's lips thinned as he realized what he was about to do. He was about to go on a date…with his father. Neji winced, and then turned towards the door.

He was boxed in a corner by everyone's expectations; there was no other choice.

Neji arrived at his father's rooms a minute or two after eight and grimaced at the people he was sure were surreptitiously watching him from the shadows before knocking on his father's door.

To his relief and partial horror, it was just the two of them in Hiashi's private rooms. Dinner went surprisingly well; they avoided the topic of their engagement and instead discussed politics and castle gossip.

When it was time for Neji to leave, Hiashi caught him by the arm before he could vanish down the hallway.

"Did you enjoy yourself?"

"Yes. Um, I enjoyed myself very much…H-Hiashi," Neji stuttered before running back for his rooms as fast as he could.

Everyone would have heard it. Everyone would know what he would do next.

Hiashi smiled slowly as Neji's braid whipped out of sight around the corner.

He'd called him 'Hiashi', not 'Father'.

Neji had formally given his consent to the proposal.

XXX

_Four weeks later…_

Neji's hands tightened automatically when Hiashi leaned over and murmured something in his ear during a particularly boring court session, and Neji smiled (albeit somewhat stiffly) at the joke.

Oh god, what was he doing here? His father was trying to woo him in front of the entire court assembly.

It had been a month since the dinner, and Neji had been surprised that his father had actually been right. No one seemed to care that his father wanted to marry him, and in fact, everyone seemed rather happy at the fact.

Neji bit back a squeak when he felt Hiashi's fingers cover his lightly before curling around his. He glanced at him, only to see his father paying close attention to the speech being given by a particularly long-winded and righteous citizen.

Neji resisted the urge to sigh and roll his eyes, only for his eyes to widen slightly when Hiashi moved his arm so that their elbows were touching.

Neji did sigh then, feeling a mixture of relief and guilt when Hiashi instantly moved away.

This was going to be a long day.

XXX

Neji smiled tiredly at Shusuke when he came through the door bearing a tray of food. "Thanks, Shu-nii."

Shusuke's smile broadened at the cute nickname. "Shu-nii?"

Neji pouted at him. "You don't like it?"

"It's fine." Shusuke set the steaming tray on Neji's desk. "Bad day today?"

"I had to sit through a full court day with Hiashi, and he flirted with me the whole time. Can you blame me if I feel a bit short-tempered?"

"Jerri sent up some mango pudding for you."

"Ah…tell him I say 'thank you'. And thank you too, Shu-nii."

"You need to be careful, Neji."

Neji stilled in his seat. "Why?"

"Hiashi's ah…very over-protective of you. You need to be careful how you treat people…it frustrates him that we can make you smile and laugh, but he still has to struggle to do those simple things."

Neji sat up straighter. "Did he…did he say anything to all of you?"

Shusuke shook his head negatively. "No, but he watches us, and we all know he's angry."

Neji blushed. "Sorry, I haven't been thinking straight…I'll be more careful from now on."

Suddenly, Shusuke moved forward so that Neji was pinned to the desk in between his arms.

"Shu-nii? What-"

Shusuke leaned in. "Neji, when will you learn to think and be more careful? You've already endangered our jobs too many times to count…"

Neji's shoulders slumped, but his eyes remained wary. "I did say I was sorry, Shu-nii…I never realized."

Shusuke sighed and kissed Neji's forehead before drawing away. "It's fine. Just remember, in the future."

Neji resisted the urge to rub his face before smiling a little half smile at Shusuke. "Yeah. Thanks for telling me."

"Ja ne."

"Yeah." Neji stared gloomily at his food before turning back to the trade contracts with a sigh. "I'm not supposed to eat until I finish reading the contract, I'm not supposed to eat before I finish reading the contract," he muttered under his breath, stubbornly resisting the delicious aroma of the food.

Neji's temptation broke after only a few minutes and he fell ravenously on the tray. After the court session, he'd locked himself in his rooms so that he could go over the various trade contracts, thus effectively avoiding his father, but unfortunately leaving him terribly hungry. Just as he'd finished eating though, someone knocked on the door.

Neji wiped his mouth and went to go see who it was. "Hell…oh…" Neji stared at his father. "Um…Hiashi. What are you doing here?"

"Are you busy right now?"

"A bit, yes."

Hiashi smiled slightly and gently took hold of Neji's hands. "Aw, Neji. You know that's no good."

Neji suddenly became very interested in the floor. "I'm reading over the trade contracts." He pulled back softly. "I-"

"You can't find even a _little_ time to spend with me?" Hiashi really did enjoy teasing Neji.

"I have to have them read by tomorrow so that I can affirm them with the councilors." Neji took another step back.

"It'll only take a few minutes," Hiashi pressed.

Neji hesitated before opening the door further. "Well…alright. Just a few minutes, though."

Hiashi smiled and handed Neji a small silk, draw-string bag. "Open it."

Neji did, and blinked in surprise when he saw three small squares of cloth. One was gold and shone brightly under the lamp light, the second was silver and glimmered like the stars in the night sky, and the third glittered as if it were covered in diamonds. "What…what are these?"

Hiashi's eyes glittered with pleasure; he'd seen the little spark of happiness in Neji's eyes at the beauty of the cloth. "Unfold them."

Neji set the silver and the moon-cloth on the desk before he began to unfold the gold cloth. To his surprise, he kept unfolding and unfolding the cloth until finally…

"Oh my," Neji gasped, nearly dropping the beautiful golden dress in his hands. "What-why-oh, it's too much-"

"It will look beautiful on you," Hiashi murmured. "That's all that matters. Can't I treat my fiancé every once in a while? Go on, unfold the other two."

Neji complied and reverently touched the fine, silken material of the dresses. "These-these are beautiful. I don't know what to say."

The first dress was a beautiful golden, glittering dress that seemed to shine like the sun; it had the appearance of _real_ gold, not that ugly brown color that seamstresses will call 'golden' after shaking a bottle of glitter over it. It was a strappy, form-hugging dress with a ribbed bodice and a long, flowing skirt.

The second dress was a glimmering sleek, silver number; it didn't shine like the first one, but twinkled slyly in the light inconspicuously, but still drew the eye. This dress was strapless and had a gauzy, knee-length skirt that fluttered and trailed slightly through the breeze in the window.

The third dress made the other three pale in comparison; in contrast, the golden dress seemed too bright, the silver dress too juvenile-this dress glittered like a snowy field beneath the harvest moon. Scatterings of small pearls rested on the full-length sleeves and the hem of the dress which trailed against the ground.

Neji turned back to Hiashi, completely and totally shocked; he hadn't expected a gift like this from him at all. "I-I, um…"

Hiashi smiled. "It's fine. I'm just glad you like them."

Neji flushed and looked to the side. "Thank you."

"No problem. Good luck with your contracts," Hiashi waved as he walked out the door.

Neji snorted; only his father would give such an extravagant gift and then leave as if it were nothing. "Hiashi…wait."

"What?"

Neji walked forward and stood on his toes before shyly kissing Hiashi on the cheek. "Th-thank you." Neji vanished back in to his room again, but not before seeing the silly grin his father's face.

**a/n: **As you can see, I am obsessed with Neji's clothing :) Unfortunately, Neji is still stuck in his situation :0 But don't worry, things will get better for him soon! Don't forget to review, and see ya next chappie!


	6. chapter 5

**a/n**: And here is the second of many time-skips in the story. *sniffle* By now, Neji has gotten used to the idea but is still freaking out-and CelestialFae, your guess is mildly correct in this chapter but sort of not. (I mean, your guess was basically the driving point for the whole story but it comes in around in a slightly different way than you said.)

Anyways…Warnings: This is our mild hyuugacest chapter. There is some making out and implications that Hiashi wants to sleep with Neji. Beyond that, nothing much… Also, please realize that this story does not in any way represent my views on incest. Disclaimer on my profile. Enjoy!

Chapter 5

_Six months later…_

Neji laughed and snuggled up to Hiashi on the couch in the king's private rooms. It had taken him a long time to get used to the idea, but eventually he had just given up on resisting. After all, what was the point? Everyone was happy with the decision, and it seemed that his father didn't have any lecherous intentions.

OK, that was a blatant lie, and Neji knew that he would have to address that issue later. However, it was simply set aside for now…

Neji had been putting off the wedding by requesting impossible gifts, clothing, anything that came to mind. Originally, the council and his father had wanted them to be married a week after Hiashi had given Neji the dresses, but Neji had begged, pleaded, and persuaded everyone for more time.

However, things were running to desperate measures. The final project that Neji had given to Hiashi was being completed at an alarming rate.

Neji had requested that Hiashi make him a cloak from the furs of a thousand different animals under the conditions that the fur was only taken from animals that were already dead, and that all thousand animals had to be living in the Hyuga Kingdom. (As a matter of fact, there were over one thousand species of animals living within the kingdom; it covered a huge expanse of land, over which half of it was forest.) However, Hiashi had already collected over two hundred species of animal fur for the cloak in a week, and he was still going strong.

Neji knew that it amused his father when he challenged him; however Neji wasn't simply putting off the inevitable. He'd been working hard to try and gather opposition to the marriage, but it was slow going. If he could hold Hiashi off for six months more, maybe he could garner enough opposition against the marriage. For now though, things were frustratingly slow and delicate; for reasons Neji couldn't fathom, no one seemed to care about the lustful looks Hiashi sent towards his son. For some reason, everyone was _happy_ that they would share their marriage bed sooner or later.

Neji continued to push to end the engagement, but even as he did so, he began to prepare to run away. He'd dug up an old leather pack, and he was slowly stashing away waterskins and small packs of dried food. He'd also made plans for money and personal affairs if he had to leave on short notice. He knew that the chances of the engagement being broken off were next to none; his father would finish the challenge in about a month and they would probably be married just in time for Neji's sixteenth birthday.

For now, though, Neji leaned in to his father's side and tried to enjoy the time they had together. It wasn't often that they both had time off royal duties, and when they did, they were often resting.

Neji raised an eyebrow when Hiashi leaned over, only to make a shocked little noise when he leaned over and kissed him.

It wasn't exactly their first kiss, but, to Neji's credit, he hadn't been paying attention.

Neji closed his eyes and tried to gently push Hiashi away, but somehow ended up pressing closer and then…

Neji made a small noise in the back of his throat, and squeaked when he realized the position they were in before forcefully pushing Hiashi away. His body was spread all across the couch, and Hiashi was braced on all fours on top of him. Neji gently removed the questing fingers from the edge of his shirt, and instead held them in his own hands on top of his stomach.

"W-wait a second."

"Did you even think about what you were wearing this morning?"

Neji blinked in confusion, and then flushed bright pink. "N-no…"

Hiashi collapsed his weight on to Neji's and pressed their foreheads together. "You need to think about what you choose to wear, Neji. I'm not made out of stone, you know."

Neji flushed even darker, self-consciously going over his outfit in his mind.

Hiashi continued, his voice lowering in pitch. "How could anyone resist you? Wearing that tight little purple shirt and those black pants…You know how sexy you look in dark colors, Neji."

Neji curled in on himself, away from his father's words and touches. "S-sorry."

Hiashi put his hands on Neji's thighs, stopping him from drawing away any further. "Sorry for what?"

Neji turned his face in to the backrest of the couch. "…For distracting you."

Hiashi moved in and started nuzzling Neji's neck. "It's ok," he whispered softly before inhaling deeply. "But Neji, you do need to realize what I want from you."

Neji gasped softly. "N-no, I-"

"You can run away from this as much as you want, but you need to understand. You understand that we'll be married soon, you understand that you can't run away from _that_ forever, you understand that you'll be ruling as a queen at my side, you understand that I love you, but you don't understand how I _want _you. If you do, then you haven't come to terms with it yet." Hiashi casually started fingering the buttons on Neji's shirt, and Neji twitched warily.

"Do you understand Neji? I stopped considering you as my daughter a long time ago; I already consider you as my wife, my loved one, my dearest. I want to kiss you, I want to touch you, I want to feel your skin beneath my fingers. I want to take you, hold you close, I want to be with you. I want to be inside of you, I want to pleasure you, I _want_ you to be mine," Hiashi whispered in Neji's ear. Neji couldn't quite hold back a shiver and Hiashi's eyes narrowed in triumph. "When will you stop running away?" He nipped the side of Neji's ear and started sucking on it, causing Neji to squirm.

"I-I…mmmm…." Neji gasped as pleasure assaulted his senses. _Damn it. I hate it when he fights dirty._ Neji opened his mouth and tried to make a cutting retort, only to gasp in surprise when he felt Hiashi's hands push his shirt up. "N-no, wait! Hiashi, st-!" Neji was cut off by Hiashi's mouth covering his own, sealing his lips and his voice from any further protests.

Hiashi didn't release Neji's mouth until after both of them were thoroughly breathless. "You wanted me to wait ever since the beginning. How much longer will this go?" he gasped. He stroked the smooth skin beneath his fingers.

"Nnnh…" Hiashi stopped touching Neji when he heard him sniffle. "Neji? Oh shit…" he drew back, carefully tugged Neji's shirt down before pulling him and in to his side so that they were sitting side by side on the couch again. "Oh, Neji, I'm sorry. I was a bit harsh." He reached down and carefully wiped the tears away from Neji's eyes.

"It's just…I want you. And you continue to run away from me. How long can you keep going, Neji?"

_I'll run from you forever!_ Neji wanted to scream, but he contained himself. "I…I'll stop running, but…you don't want…you really…before?" Neji squeaked out, trying his best not to show his mind. He was still thoroughly shaken; he was strongly reminded of what Kidomaru had tried to…had tried to…Neji sniffled again and bit his lip before burying his face in Hiashi's shoulder. After that incident, he had always been horribly shy of social contact and especially with his _father…_Neji held back his shudder.

Hiashi relaxed in a relief, interpreting Neji's actions to mean that he wasn't angry with him. "We can wait, we can wait until we get married, but Neji…no matter when you want to, please know that I will always treat with love and care."

"Yeah, I know," Neji muttered. "I…um…"

"What?" Hiashi took Neji's chin between his thumb and forefinger; when their eyes met, Neji couldn't hold back the fuzzy feeling in his stomach even though they had just fought.

Unfortunately, the tender moment was broken when an abrupt knock on the door caused the pair to spring apart guiltily as a furious woman stormed in to the room.

Neji discreetly smoothed the front of his shirt down and shoved his hair behind his ears while he shot a look at Hiashi. What was this lady doing here?

"When I heard, I came at once, I knew it couldn't be you I just _knew _it couldn't be-" the woman was babbling frantically, and Neji finally placed who she was.

"Aunt Tsunade?"

The woman blinked. "Yes?"

"What are you talking about?" Hiashi cut across them impatiently.

"The marriage!" Tsunade exclaimed. "I never thought you would've done something like this, so I knew they must've forced you in to it and I'm here to try and help as best I can!"

Neji shot a panicked look at Hiashi who nodded at him discretely. He stood up quickly. "I'll go tell the servants to get your room ready."

"Hey, what's the rush, nephew? Sit down and talk with the adults."

Neji's hands tightened at his sides. "If I don't go now, your room won't be ready for a while."

Tsunade watched him curiously, and then her eyes narrowed when Hiashi gently pulled Neji back to sit on the couch beside him.

Her eyes widened when Hiashi pulled Neji over to sit closer and kept his arm around his waist. "As you can see, sister…we are not, ah, against the marriage so to speak."

Tsunade instantly started shouting again. "You-! Hiashi, how could you! He's your _son!_ I knew that your wife would have a bad influence on you, her with her incest and fancy airs and ancestry and all her obsession with beauty-"

Neji's eyes hardened. "Don't insult mother in that way!"

Tsunade's wrath turned on Neji. "And YOU!" she shrieked. "Oh, you! How could you consent to this? You want your father in that way? What is wrong with you?"

"I didn't-" Neji glanced over at his father before shrinking down underneath Tsunade's wrathful gaze. "I don't want him in that way," he whispered. "In the beginning, the council forced me to. Just…just don't run in here and start accusing everyone before you know what's going on!" Neji stood up and ran out of the room.

Hiashi turned on her furiously. "Now look at what you've done, you've upset him and-" and the two were off and bickering again.

Later that night though, lying in her bed, Tsunade frowned as she remembered Neji's reaction…she could've sworn that she'd seen a slight glimmer of hope in Neji's eyes before he'd left the room.

**a/n**: Aw…don't worry, Neji's going to get out of his situation next chapter. Poor Neji; he's still so conflicted! Even though he's working so hard, it looks like all his effort is going to be for nothing. It may be time for drastic measures! *wink* Please review, and see ya next chappie!


	7. Chapter 6

**a/n**: Hey everybody! Cole-Hyuuga, thank you for your review. You were the only one for chapter 5, heh. Anyways, warnings: beyond extreme unrealistic-ness nothing much. Disclaimer on my profile. Onwards to chapter 6!

Chapter 6

_One month later…_

Neji closed his eyes in his bedroom, trying to fight off the rapidly increasing distress running through his mind.

_Flashback mode…_

_**Two weeks ago…**_

"Neji."

"Yes, Hiashi?" Neji turned around from where he'd been pouring tea for the two of them and gasped in quiet surprise when his father pointed towards the package sitting on the table. "The tea can wait. I have another gift for you."

Neji went over to the tea table and began to unwrap the package with trembling hands.

Hiashi watched him with an inscrutable expression.

Neji gently rubbed the cloak; the inside of his thousand-fur cloak was a satiny but durable kind of material, and the outside had been treated so that it was just as silky-soft as the inside. "A-all of the conditions were followed?"

Hiashi smiled at last. "But of course," he murmured, coming around the table and enfolding Neji in to an embrace. "The ceremony is set in two weeks."

Neji was glad that Hiashi couldn't see his face, for otherwise he would surely have seen the horrified terror in his eyes.

_(end flashback mode)_

Neji lit a candle in his dark room before surveying the familiar walls he had grown up his whole life in. Tonight was the night; he was running away to a place where his father couldn't find him. Neji grabbed his pack and swung it over his shoulder. It contained a small amount of dried food, water, and the three dresses his father had given him. In addition to the dresses (Neji was extremely grateful for their light weight and the way they folded in to small, paper-thin squares), Neji, after some debate, took the golden ring his father had given him at the beginning of their courtship, a silver thimble, and his mother's diamond earrings.

Tonight was the perfect night to escape; no one would think he was running away. Also, he was alone holding vigil the night before the wedding; everyone else was celebrating in the servants quarters so he would sneak out unnoticed.

Neji had already decided his destination; he knew that his father would tear the earth apart to look for him, but he wouldn't go looking in the Uchiha kingdom. It was the least likely place that Neji would go considering the dangerous journey it would take to get there. Neji had everything carefully planned out using maps and calculating everything very, very carefully. So much of his plan stood on good fortune and chance, it was crucial to get everything else right.

The Uchiha border was several days journey on horseback. Then, he had to cross through the forest, in which the capitol city lay directly on the other side of the woods. He would then proceed to find work and root himself firmly in the Uchiha society and begin his new life.

Neji knew that, like nearly everyone in the Hyuga kingdom having fair hair and pale eyes, in Uchiha everyone had dark hair and dark eyes. Fortunately, he had a remedy to that. He had bought many sets of eye lenses from the castle glass craftsman; they were tinged dark brown so that when he put them on, it gave him the appearance of having brown eyes. His dark hair would blend in nicely with the other citizens', and hopefully no one would suspect him. After his father stopped looking, Neji would leave the Uchiha and head to home, or to a different kingdom where he would blend in better depending on the state of affairs in the Hyuga.

Neji paid his respects to his mother and asked for her blessings before paying his respects to his room and hurrying away through the silent corridors of the castle. He wrapped the thousand-fur cloak around him tightly; this was the final sentiment he was bringing with him on the journey. Hopefully, the wears of travel would give it a more ragged appearance, but for now he had a winter cloak that was warm and well made. He wouldn't leave it, particularly since he was planning his escape during January and when impending snows and rains threatened his plans.

Neji had made it out a servant entrance and was saddling up a plain pack mare after sadly bidding farewell to his own horse, Ryoma, when someone entered the stables.

Neji cursed softly and hid himself in the mare's stall while holding his breath; to his relief, the person staggered away and then back out the stable door with a drunken shout of laughter. Neji shook his head and began saddling up the mare with increased urgency; suppose someone had heard the shout and came back in? Neji went over everything in his mind as he tied the pack down on to the saddle before leading the mare out.

He'd left the letter to his father, the letter to the council board, his farewells to everyone else, he'd told Haku about his escape but hadn't told him where he was going, everything was arranged to look like he was still sleeping soundly in his bed…Neji nodded sharply before pulling himself over the horse's back, putting his feet in the stirrups and galloping out of the courtyard, out another servant exit, and heading out to the main road that would take him to the border.

XXX

Neji rode well in to the next morning, knowing that he had to set himself a good head start before his father sent out his guards looking for him. He stopped briefly in a small lumber oriented village for a few hours before setting out at dusk again; he knew that the soldiers would most likely search the roads by day, and search the towns by night. As long as he made sure not to stay around too long, he would be fine.

He'd slipped the contact lenses on at the previous village, and he'd tucked his long hair in to the back of his common cloak (he'd known that the other cloak would draw suspicion, so he'd kept it in his pack for now) so that hopefully, to any other soldier, he looked like any other traveler on the road. (Unfortunately, for his escape Neji had to wear male clothes; if he was a lone female traveler, he would certainly stand out from the crowd. He was keeping his female clothes for the journey through the forest.)

Also, since he was traveling alone, it made him a clear target for robbery. Neji's sensitive ears picked up the sounds of horses closing in on him after several hours of travel, and he prepared himself for battle.

He was well-trained in self-defense in any kind of situation, especially in the dark. However, he was on the sweet little pack mare he'd chosen (whose name, incidentally, was Eiji), and she had never experience battle on horseback before. He pulled her to a sudden stop before jumping off the horse and knocking the other riders out of their mounts when the pulled up abruptly, startled and unable to control their horses. Neji jumped back on to Eiji and urged her in to a frantic gallop as they ran away from the robbers, but inwardly Neji bit his cheek. It wouldn't be this easy every time he was attacked. As a matter of fact, in the next town, Neji had to use his knife to get out of a sticky situation with a belligerent, drunken man along with his unique style of self-defense. He hadn't seriously injured the man, but he wasn't taking any chances…not after Kidomaru.

Neji had left that town two hours earlier than planned; he didn't want word getting around of the strange boy who fought like a professional getting around with soldiers hot on his trail.

Neji closed his eyes and wept in to Eiji's mane as they trotted down the road; he wept for loneliness, the pain he'd caused his entire family, and soon to be entire kingdom even as he ran away for his own selfish reasons.

_Three days later…_

Neji knelt down on the ground in front of the entrance in front of the forest and began to pray.

There was a rainstorm that was soon to begin, but it was his best chance of escape. If he went now, no one would ever dare to imagine that he had fled through the forest during the storm.

He prayed for favor from the gods, he prayed for forgiveness from his ancestors and his mother, and prayed for the eventual happiness of his father and his people. He released Eiji and sent him back on his way home with a murmured blessing and a special token he'd bought from a village priest before shouldering his pack, and stepping on to the quickly darkening path that lead through the forest.

At most, he had two weeks to get through the forest, but Neji knew anything could happen; something might happen to his food supplies or water or he might be injured or attacked. He was aiming for eight days…Neji looked up and ducked under the safe haven of the pine branches as water began to thunder down from the heavens.

Well, wasn't that an ominous start?

Neji gulped, dug around in his pack and pulled on a square of tarp over his pack and thousand-fur cloak (no one would see him in the forest, so he could wear it now) before setting off on the path again. According to all the books and reports he'd read, the forest was relatively safe as long as one didn't disturb the larger animals. There was the occasional wolf attack, but otherwise Neji was relatively un-worried. He could do this; he was brave enough to run away from the incestuous marriage. What was a forest compared to being forced to share his marriage bed with his father?

Neji frowned and picked up a large stick before setting off again with his newly found staff.

There was no turning back now.

**a/n**: Yes, I know. It's very unrealistic…pardon any strange wording or run-on sentences. I hope you enjoyed-this is the last of Hiashi we'll see in a while. Next chapter, we meet some new characters as Neji continues his journey through the forest. Don't forget to review, and see you in chapter 7!


	8. Chapter 7

**a/n**: Hello everybody! **Gina-**Thank you for your review Yes, Neji is a very strong…boy, lol. Anyways, Disclaimer on my profile, no warnings…this chapter, we meet some new characters and Neji comes up with a weird backstory Yes, my creative genius was kind of down the drain at the point when I wrote this…oh well.

Chapter 7

Over the past few days, it had been increasingly difficult for Neji to travel through the forest; the storm that had broken over head was the sort that went on nonstop over several days, and the path was soggy and difficult to get through. Neji was grateful for the water impermeable boots he was wearing, but it didn't make things easier.

Neji was also concerned about staying dry; it was nearly impossible to build a fire, and Neji didn't want to get sick but he was already sniffling and coughing a bit. He continued on through the forest in a determined haze, unaware of the passing of the days through his fever.

Finally, Neji spotted smoke off to the right of the path. He blundered toward it, too exhausted to do anything but move his legs and keep his pack from falling off his back when he finally reached the front door of a cottage with a merrily smoking roof.

The never-ending rain beat down on his head, but Neji didn't care as he knocked on the door.

The door flew open to reveal a boy with a pudding-bowl black hair cut, very nice teeth, and huge eyebrows.

Neji saw an identically odd older man moving towards the door before he collapsed on their doorstep, too shattered in both mind and body, to carry on.

XXX

Neji woke in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar room; it took him a moment to remember what had happened.

The next thing he noticed was that everything hurt; his muscles were completely stiff, his head was throbbing and his throat felt dry, raw and bloody.

Neji must have made a pained noise because in the next instance, the odd-looking boy was at his bedside. "It appears you are awake, my youthful friend!" he boomed.

Neji winced; his head really was very sore. The boy noticed and quieted down instantly. "My name is Rock Lee. You are safe here, stranger."

Neji tried to tell Lee his name, but before he could do so he'd already fallen asleep again.

XXX

The next time Neji woke, he felt much better. His body was still sore, but his head hardly hurt at all.

Neji gingerly propped himself up on his elbows before cautiously surveying the room again. It was night, but this time, the older man was awake.

"You're awake again? Here, drink some of this." The man supported Neji's head as he forced a bitter tasting tea down his throat. "I know, it tastes nasty, but I'll certainly help your throat. Your youthful voice will be back in no time!"

Neji blinked in confusion. _What is it with these two and youth? And…where am I anyways? It probably wasn't the safest idea to come here and-_

"My name is Might Gai, and that boy over there is my adopted son, Rock Lee. You're safe here; we'll take care of you until you are well and able again. Now, rest, my boy. You still have a ways to go in recovery."

Neji's eyes fluttered closed at the reassurance of safety.

XXX

The third time Neji woke up, he finally felt at peace. His body wasn't in any pain anymore, and he propped himself up on his elbows before looking curiously around the room.

The two occupants of the little house heard the rustling noises and rushed over instantly. "Awake again? Are you finally feeling better?"

Neji coughed weakly. "Yes, thank you. Thanks for taking care of me all this time."

Gai waved his hand dismissively. "It was nothing; and you were certainly in need of help. If you hadn't found us, you would mostly likely have died from your fever."

Neji stilled at the sobering thought. "H-how can I repay you? I-"

"No repayment is needed. We would have done it for anyone-particularly a blossoming youth such as yourself!" Gai stood in his good-guy stance.

Neji blinked, and then decided to go with it. "I owe you my life."

Lee smiled and patted Neji's head. "You're persistent, aren't you? But if Gai-sensei says so, than it must be right!"

Neji stared as the two started crying tears of joy while hugging each other. _Those two have the most sickeningly exuberantly joyful father-son relationship. But then again, who am I to talk?_

Over the next few days as Neji slowly regained his strength, he learned several things. First of all, Lee and Gai never ran out of energy. Ever. Hell, they even slept energetically; they both had these intense expressions on their faces and tossed and turned quite a bit.

Secondly, both of them were trained in self-defense. Neji could beat Lee because of his ability to see the tenketsu nodes in his body (the joining points of energy pathways), but Gai was a different story entirely.

Thirdly, they were both heading to the Uchiha capitol named Kunimitsu city to find work at the palace; apparently, the palace had no shortage of available job positions.

Fourthly, the Uchiha kingdom had very strange laws. Both Gai and Lee (and himself, Neji supposed) were classified as a certain group of fighters known as 'street fighters'. In the Uchiha cities, rather than having a local militia or police force, street fighters gangs kept the peace in various parts of the city. The gangs weren't so bad depending on where you were, but Gai and Lee were heading up to Kunimitsu to join up with some old friends in the gang run by Hatake Kakashi. From what Neji had gathered, Gai and Kakashi seemed to have a rather odd hate-love relationship with each other. Anyways, Neji was apparently welcome to join and make new friends since it seemed like they would be staying together for a very long time.

The journey to the capitol took three days to reach the greater city by foot, and another day to secure a job position at the palace.

Neji pondered what position he should apply for at the palace; he was well-rounded in a number of different subjects. He could clean, cook, read, fight…Neji sighed, and struggled to keep up with Lee and Gai's fast pace as they journeyed through the last stretch of the woods. In all, including the time he'd been passed out in their cottage, the journey had taken seventeen days; he'd been travelling alone for a week by his reckoning, passed out at their cottage for another five days, and then he'd been recovering for three days and they had set out two days ago.

Neji's thoughts wandered as they continued along the path; he had yet to provide Gai and Lee with a story on why he was traveling alone through the woods. When they'd tried and asked him, it hadn't taken much acting to cry and act distressed so that they backed off, but he knew he was pushing his time.

That evening, he was proven correct when Gai-sensei (since Gai kept teaching Neji extremely useful things about the forest and the Uchiha, Neji had provided him with the nick-name) asked him where he was from as they sat around their little fire. (The rain had stopped about a week ago after a week-long rainstorm).

Neji opened his mouth to speak, and then shut it, feeling mildly panicked. There were so many holes in his story; he just had to hope that they would fall for it.

"Well," he murmured softly. "I'm ah-running away from home."

"Why?" Lee asked immediately, but then shrank back under his foster father's disapproving gaze. "Bad timing?"

"A bit, yeah. Continue, Neji."

"I come from a secluded community in the far stretches of the forest that runs along the border of the Uchiha and Hyuga. I had plenty of books from my mother and trading caravans passed through occasionally, so I'm very well-learned, but unfortunately my father didn't approve of the Uchiha government. I know next to nothing about my own country, but I know nearly everything about many others." Neji smiled bitterly. "Ironic, isn't it? Well anyways, my mother died barely a year ago, and my father was hit very hard by the loss…I'm sixteen years old. And…" Neji bit his lip. "I can't tell you why I'm running away. I'm very sorry."

"Why can't you tell us? We won't think badly of you-"

"You don't understand!" Neji shouted, and then flinched at his own outburst. "I mean…you will. It's horrible, you'll…you'll think I'm disgusting," Neji whispered softly. "Please, _please_ don't make me tell you."

Gai relented at Neji's tearful expression. "Very well then. I'm sorry about your mother, by the way."

Neji wiped his eyes. "Thank you. She was very beautiful."

"You're very beautiful yourself, Neji! Your youthful face has a certain quality to it!" Lee beamed at him.

"I do have another question for you," Gai interrupted. "Why ah…Lee and I, we're both aware that you are very male. Why do you…?" he gestured vaguely at Neji's dress.

Neji flushed. "My…my mother, she wished for a daughter but I was born a boy. She raised me as a girl and my father didn't mind and so…here I am now." Neji chuckled nervously. "You…you don't mind too much, do you?"

Gai shook his head and smiled warmly. "I don't mind at all, I was simply curious my youthful student! Now, eat up-we have the last of the journey ahead of us tomorrow."

Neji sighed with relief; a relatively simple lie and it would make up for his extreme lack of knowledge about the Uchiha government. He chanted the lie in his head. _I come from a secluded village in the forest. My mother is dead. I'm sixteen years old. I'm well-learned because of the trading caravans, and thus well-cared for._ Neji carefully went over the lie in his head as he lay on the ground that night. _I act and dress like a girl because my mother wanted it. My father was the head of our community. And…if I absolutely have to…I'll tell them the truth._

Neji scowled; the lenses in his eyes were irritating him again. He would have to put in the medication tomorrow morning, before the others woke up.

He knew he wasn't supposed to sleep with the colored lenses on, but for now he would take no chances. Hopefully when he found work at the palace, he would have more privacy and be able to sleep at night without them.

Neji sighed and rolled over so that he faced the little fire, oddly drowsy from the rhythmic snores of his companions.

Reassured that he was no longer alone, Neji, former Princess of the Hyuga kingdom, closed his eyes and fell in to a deep, dreamless sleep.

**a/n**: And that's chapter 7! Next chapter, we meet even more new people and…Itachi-kun! So, that means you need to stick around heh. Anyways, don't forget to review (it only takes two seconds guys! I really want to know what you think whether it be about the direction of the story, grammatical errors, or plot inconsistencies just drop me a line. I feel so sad about only getting one review for each other last two chapters.) and I'll see you next chapter!


	9. Chapter 8

**a.n.** Hey y'all! This is chapter 8 where we meet kakashi and get introduced to kunimitus city, and Neji considers joining a gang. Unfortunately, I miscounted and Itachi doesn't show up until...next chapter...*winces* SORRY! *sniffle* Anyways, no warnings, disclaimer on my profile...enjoy!

Chapter 8

_Four days later…_

Neji stared wide-eyed around the streets of the bustling city. "W-wow…" he breathed. "It seems so…so…?"

"Youthful?" Lee suggested helpfully.

Neji 's mouth twitched. "I was going to say 'busy'. But youthful works well too." Now that Neji looked carefully, he could see that many of the people hurrying down the streets were relatively young ranging from late teens to mid-twenty. "How come all the people here are so young?"

"Ah…many of the workers in Kunimitsu are also students at the university here," Lee said as they picked their way through the crowds. "Many of them have day-jobs to pay for their classes and then learn at night. Also, there are a lot of available apprenticeships around here…however, you'll find that there are plenty of elderly people as well as young people once we leave the shipping district. According to the map Gai-sensei has (Lee had also adopted Neji's nickname), there's a port a few roads down from here." Neji nodded in response as they continued to fight their way through the crowds to where Gai had said he would meet them; he'd sent them along the road to go buy lunch shortly after their arrival in the city and Neji and Lee were carrying two paper sacks with hot buns and Neji had taken the liberty of re-filling his waterskin for them to share.

They found Gai animatedly talking to a man with a mask that covered all of his face except for one eye and shock of spiky silver hair.

Neji blinked curiously, and then shrank back slightly underneath the older man's inquisitive gaze. Now that they were standing closer to the man, Neji could see that he was not old as his hair suggested, but rather young. Neji wondered if something had happened to him for him to cover that much of his face.

"Who's the little girl?"

Neji scoffed and turned his head away. "I'm sixteen."

"He's a boy!" Lee chimed in cheerfully.

Neji turned to him, shocked. "Lee!"

"What?" Lee looked a bit hurt. "It's something he should know right?"

The man started laughing, causing both teens to turn and look at him. "I've seen stranger things in the city, lad. I am Hatake Kakashi, the leader of the Konoha street fighters. You're welcome to join us."

"Oh, yes, Neji can fight," Lee said eagerly. "Even though Gai-sensei took me away from the city for a year of special training so that I can join the ranks this year, Neji has beaten me in every practice spar we've had."

"Lee," Neji said, exasperated. "Kindly don't run around telling my life's story every single person you meet." Kakashi chuckled again, but Neji ignored him.

Lee remained adamant. "But this is Kakashi-sensei, a longtime friend of my family's! And he will be your friend also, Neji!"

Neji sighed and ruffled Lee's hair before turning to Gai. "We got the food."

"Excellent!" Gai boomed, having no problem being heard over the bustle of the crowd. "Let us eat on our way to the palace."

Neji shook his head at Gai's antics, but hurried along after the father and son. "Would you like some food?" Neji gestured towards the bag which he knew only contained one meat bun.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at Neji's sudden meekness. "Sure."

Neji handed the bun to Kakashi and threw away the paper bag before trying to content his empty stomach with a few sips of water.

"Aren't you hungry?"

"I'll be alright," Neji said shortly.

"If you're sure," Kakashi shrugged, and took a bite of the meat bun. "So, I never caught your name, little girl."

"Neji."

"No last name?"

Neji's lips thinned. "No."

Kakashi laughed. "Stubborn, are we? Well, I don't give a damn about your backstory as long as you aren't a criminal on the run. Konoha doesn't harbor fugitives."

Neji nearly winced at the word 'fugitives', but shook his head. "No crime."

"Are you interested in joining the gang?"

Neji glanced at him from the corner of his eye. "Perhaps. I still don't understand how these things work."

"What do you mean? Every citizen of the Uchiha knows about the street fighters."

"I lived in a closed-off community that had a history of hatred for the Uchiha rule. I know nothing about my country."

"You hate the Uchiha rule?"

"No. Obviously, otherwise I wouldn't go looking for a job at the palace," Neji shot back. "My parents hated it. I didn't know anything about it. I'll make my own decision for myself."

Kakashi smirked under his mask. "Fine. You won't achieve much if you're trying to get rid of the prince, though."

Neji snorted. "I'm not here to do that. I'm here to find work."

"At the palace. From a place where the Uchiha family is hated," Kakashi pointed out. "Pardon me if I seem a little bit skeptical."

"My community consists of uneducated, brain-washed commoners," Neji shot back. "I was able to learn better from what little I could get my hands on."

"Uneducated, brain-washed commoners? That's not a very nice thing to say about your folks."

Neji clenched his fists. "That's none of your business."

Kakashi raised his hands in an attempt to soothe Neji. "Sorry, sorry. It's our job as the street fighters in the central district to take care of the royal family, though. Everyone's gotta go through the inspection, kid."

"My name is Neji," Neji snapped. "Did I pass?"

"So long as you don't try anything funny," Kakashi returned. "You running away from home?"

Neji hurried ahead to catch up with Gai and Lee, leaving Kakashi in the dust.

Kakashi shook his head before ambling after them. He'd just get the rest of the story from Gai later.

XXX

"So, what do you think of Kakashi, Neji?" The group had gone up to the palace gates, and had been informed that job interviews would take place in the evening. Kakashi had wandered off somewhere, but Gai and Lee had decided that since they had several hours, they would get reacquainted with the city. Currently, Gai was chatting animatedly with a pregnant woman with red eyes, and a man with a stubbly chin and a cigarette hanging loosely out of his mouth.

Neji scowled. "He's a nosy, irritating fool."

"Neji!" Lee gasped. "That's not very nice!"

"It's true," Neji said petulantly. "We were walking behind you, and he wouldn't stop asking me about my family." _I can't believe I let him learn that much about me in five minutes. I better keep my guard up…especially since he seems less trusting than Lee and Gai._

Lee sighed. "Well, he has to make sure that you're trust-worthy before you can join the gang."

Neji decided to change the subject. "Whenever you guys start saying 'gang', I get nervous. How exactly does one join this gang?"

Lee laughed. "You've been reading too many storybooks Neji! We're one of the better gangs around here; the way you join is you spar against Kakashi, he either accepts you or denies you, and then you attend a gang dinner where you receive a job."

"So…jobs aren't just like patrolling, or fighting?"

"Naw…some people who join the gangs, like the university students I was talking about earlier, they don't have time to do patrols. Instead, they get to do other things like keep intel on activity in the streets, make sure the gang gets fed, or keep track of our money and shipments."

"I see. Wait…money and shipments?"

"We pay various people to supply us with weapons and other supplies in case of riots and uprisings which happen every now and then, given that the university students get exposed to all sorts of crazy ideas. Also, weapons shipments…we also dabble a little bit in security. We keep the peace in the streets and make sure that all the shipments are safe and legal and in return, we get free supplies from the vendors and merchants. And what organization doesn't need money?"

"I guess so," Neji said thoughtfully. "Wow…this is so much different than I'm used to…"

Lee grinned and clapped Neji on the back. "You'll accommodate in no time, Neji!"

Neji tilted his head and gently shrugged away from Lee. "I suppose."

Lee frowned; Neji always seemed to shrug away from physical contact. "You are very shy Neji, even though we have a deep connection! Why is this?"

Neji turned white. "L-lee…I don't, um, I'm not trying to offend you."

"Neji! You suddenly turned very pale! Are you alright?"

Gai ambled over, and then looked sharply between Lee and Neji, who was leaning against the wall and trembling.

"Neji? What is the matter?"

Neji smiled tightly. "Nothing." He pushed himself away from the wall. "I'm' alright."

Lee gazed at him concernedly. "Was it something I said?"

"No, Lee, it's not your fault," Neji said gently. "Shall we continue on, Gai-sensei?"

Lee frowned. "But Neji, if I offended you-"

"No! You could never offend me, Lee. I just…remembered something," Neji said shakily. "Please, let's go on. I want to learn more about Kunimitsu city."

This time, Gai stood firmly in the way. "Neji. You must tell Lee of his mistakes, or else he will never learn."

"He didn't offend me!" Neji protested. "It's alright, really-"

"He almost made you faint! Neji, my youthful student, if you are still feeling ill you must tell us. Do you understand?"

"I'm fine," Neji mumbled. "And I understand, Gai-sensei."

"Good. Now, what did Lee ask you, so that we know better not to ask in the future?"

Neji stiffened. "He…he asked me why I am uncomfortable with physical contact," Neji said softly.

Gai raised an eyebrow. "Well. Lee, be sure not to ask him about that again. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Gai-sensei! I will run a thousand laps around Kunimitsu city to negate my grievous actions!" Lee saluted.

Neji sighed in embarrassment. "Not now, Lee. But um, thank you. For your consideration."

Gai nodded before remembering what he had been about to tell the two youths. "Ah yes! Neji, I would like to introduce you to my old friends, Asuma and Kurenai…Lee, I'm sure you remember…"

Neji allowed himself to be lead towards the couple while Lee danced with joy at seeing his old friends again beside him.

However, Gai looked appraisingly over his new student with a different perspective as he talked with Asuma and Kurenai.

Apparently, this young boy had gone through many hardships before now; Gai could guess what had happened to Neji to cause him to react like that.

Hopefully, Neji could learn to get past the pain and fear of the incident when he started his new life in Kunimitsu. Until then though, Gai decided that he would have to keep a closer eye on his student. Hopefully, Neji would learn to love his life and love himself the way he was, rather than stay stranded in regret from whatever he was running away from.

**a.n**: I hope you enjoyed! Don't you just love lee and gai? Anyways, don't forget to review :) See ya next chappie!


	10. Chapter 9

**a/n**: Hey y'all! Thank you for all of your lovely reviews. (We hit 20-HOORAY!) In this chapter, we actually do meet Itachi so hopefully that makes up for the big disappointment last chapter *sorry sorry* Anyways, no warnings, disclaimer on my profile…enjoy!

Chapter 9

Neji fiddled nervously with his skirt while he waited outside of the courtroom with Gai and Lee.

"Might Gai, Rock Lee, and Neji," the guard droned and opened the doors to the courtroom.

Neji scurried after Gai and Lee. They'd told him that there was no shortage of jobs in the palace, but Neji was worried…what if he didn't fit the requirement for any of the available jobs?"

Neji gasped softly at the sight that met his eyes in the courtroom. The room was grey stone, and at the top of the wide dais was an ornate throne in which a young man lounged.

Gai and Lee bowed, and Neji followed their example with a curtsy. The man on the throne wasn't King Fugaku…

Suddenly, Neji realized who he was; he was Prince Itachi! But Itachi wasn't succeeding Fugaku for the throne, his younger brother Sasuke was. So why was he holding court?

"You three are here looking for jobs, yes?"

The little group nodded, and Prince Itachi smiled. "Gai…Lee! I'm glad to see you two are back again! Fortunately, the positions that you had before you left last year have not been filled yet. Would you like them back?"

"We would be honored, your highness. How fares the rest of your family?"

Itachi smiled kindly. "King Fugaku, Queen Mikoto, and Sasuke are touring the kingdom for the next nine months, so I'm here to hold court for them while they're gone. They have been doing very well despite your absence. I assure you, both of you were sorely missed."

"Our loyalty has been unwavering in our absence, my lord." Gai bowed low.

"I'm glad to hear of it." Itachi smiled at the father and son before switching his gaze to Neji.

Neji held back a small gasp of surprise. Itachi really was a very handsome man…Neji would guess his age to be eighteen.

"And you are?"

"Neji, sir."

"No last name?"

"None, sir."

"Well, Neji…you are looking for a job?"

"Yes, sir."

"You seem very meek."

Neji blushed, unable to hold it back any longer. "Ah…I've been told that sir."

Itachi smiled. "Well, what can you do to help us out, Neji? We have plenty of positions open."

"I can cook, clean, um…read, write…"

"The cleaning staff is always in need of help, as well as the kitchens, my lord." A scribe bowed obsequiously from his seat beneath Itachi's throne.

"Yes? Well, in that case you can do part time in both areas Neji. I hope to see you all shortly. Dismissed!"

They all bowed and exited the courtroom through a door off to the side.

"Does Prince Itachi know every servant personally?"

"Oh yes, but us especially since Lee here has been training with him since a very young age. Also, a lot of the servant staff left with Sasuke, Mikoto and Fugaku-sama on their yearly tour of the kingdom. By the way, our jobs are day jobs as gardeners. Since you work part time in the kitchens and cleaning, you'll be very busy…now we need to go grab rooms in the servant quarters for ourselves and then we have to report to the head of our staffs. Come along!"

Neji hurried after them. "But Gai-sensei…should I take quarters in the female section or the male section?"

"You might as well go for female. I honestly don't everyone will care too much. Oh, and I'll speak to Kakashi about having you help feed the night shift Konoha members."

"Thanks."

"We'll meet you at the entrance to the quarters in half an hour. Introduce yourself to the others and get settled. Have fun!"

"Ja ne." The little group split paths, and Neji couldn't help but feel a little bit nervous. He could only hope that the girls he was about to meet would be just as kind and welcoming as Gai and Lee had.

XXX

As a matter of fact, they were. He'd gone in and called out, and a girl with pink hair and green eyes named Sakura had come out. He'd awkwardly explained his unusual situation to her, but she was letting him stay in the girl's quarters because 'if you look like one, then the men won't hesitate to jump you. We girls don't mind a bit of company, and you seem plenty girl enough'. She'd assigned him a room, let him stow his pack, and had introduced him to all the other women present at the time. He was pleasantly surprised to learn that Kurenai also worked at the palace, but she lived in a small apartment with Asuma outside of the palace.

In addition to Kurenai, a woman named Shizune, a girl named Tayuya who was a year younger than Neji, Ten-Ten (Neji's age), Konan, Kushina, and Karin. When Neji expressed his surprise at the small size of the female workforce, they laughed and told him that there were a lot more men than women, and that most of the others were working right now as they attended university classes at night. Ten-Ten, Kurenai, and Konan were part of Konoha and Shizune was their medic.

Apparently, there was also another unusual case like Neji who was staying in the female quarters; his name was Kimimaro, but apparently he was quiet and kept to himself. Neji smiled softly at that; hopefully, Kimimaro would be a good person.

Neji sighed in relief when he was told that he would have absolute privacy; the only rules for the servants quarters was to clean up your own mess and to always _always_ knock on someone's door if you wanted to enter another room.

"Um…I have to go meet Gai and Lee and the servants entrance now," Neji said shyly. "Thank you for your kindness."

"Say, there's a Konoha dinner tonight. Come on down with Gai and let us learn a bit about you. If you're lucky, you can have your match with Kakashi and get your job right away," Ten-Ten smiled at him. "Anyways, be sure to report to Grandma Chiyo, the head cook, and Deidara-san who's in charge of the cleaning staff. You'll be needing a uniform too…well, anyways, see you later tonight Neji!"

"Yeah!" Neji waved and hurried off, a warm feeling in his chest.

Yes, he still missed his home terribly, but luck was with him so far; he was in a good place with kind, warm people.

Things were off to an excellent start.

XXX

Neji waved as he hurried down the corridor. "Sorry for being the last one to get here," he said sheepishly. "Where are we off to now? And um…Ten-Ten says there's a Konoha dinner tonight."

Gai beamed. "Excellent! We can introduce you to our youthful group this evening! For now though, we'll take you down to Deidara and Chiyo. They're the head of the cleaning staff and the kitchens. They'll give you a uniform and pull up a schedule for you."

"Why do I need a uniform?"

"For Chiyo, it lets the merchants know that you need things for the palace. For Deidara…well, he just likes it I think. He's a bit of an odd guy; he's always obsessed with his explosions. Anyhow…" Gai knocked on a door sharply before entering. "Deidara! It's been so long!"

"Gai!" a man (was the person a man?) with a long blonde ponytail, floppy bangs and blue eyes stood up. "Has your perspective on art changed?"

"Not a bit!" Gai roared. Neji flinched, but held his ground. "Anyways, I have a new member for you! Deidara, this is Neji! He's assigned to kitchens and cleaning staff."

Deidara was rather tall, and he had to bend down a bit to look at Neji closely. "He can work from morning 'til noon," he said abruptly. "Chiyo can have him in the evenings and night duty for Konoha. Neji, is it?" he stuck out his hand. "I'm a fighter for the Konoha gang; I specialize in bombs and I only go fighting if there's a riot or impending civil war. Nice to meet you. I sure hope you can clean well!"

"Yes, sir," Neji smiled nervously as he shook his hand. "Um…you are a sir, right?"

Deidara laughed. "Cheeky, aren't we? Yes, I'm 'sir' to you little lady."

Lee jumped in. "He's a boy."

"Lee!" Neji sighed in exasperation.

"Little lad then," Deidara continued, undeterred. "Now, let me get back to my work. For morning duty, you can report to Temari and Ten-Ten for assignments. Run along to Chiyo and ask her for a uniform now. Nice to see you Lee, Gai." He turned back to his desk and started muttering to himself. Gai, Lee, and Neji left the room quietly.

"Off to Chiyo's then. We have the morning shift for gardening as well, so we don't have to go see our boss until we take care of you," Lee assured Neji when he asked them whether or not they had to go. "Chiyo's a bit of an interesting lady; she and her brother are a bit crazy, and they're both obsessed with puppets but she's an excellent cook! And she's got a kind heart."

Neji smiled as they headed downstairs to the kitchen and Lee and Gai continued to call out continuously to old friends. They reached the kitchens, relayed Deidara's message, and Neji received a position as soup-stirrer as well as a uniform. Neji blinked before his lip twitched; the uniform was rather adorable in his opinion. It was white button-up shirt, a blue knee-length skirt and a full-length black apron for cooking, but a white half-apron for cleaning.

"You'll have two pairs; one for your cleaning duties and one for when you come down in to the kitchen," Chiyo croaked. "I'll have you on the evening shift, and you'll be feeding those rowdy Konoha fighters along with Kushina. Now, be sure and be back here by seven o'clock sharp so that we can get you fed and working."

"Yes ma'am." Neji bowed and left the kitchen, smiling nervously as the other workers stared curiously at him.

Once they had escaped from the noisy din of the kitchen, Neji ventured to ask several questions of his own. "What…what's Prince Itachi like?"

"He's always studying, locked up in the palace library," Lee smiled. "But he always puts the country in front of himself. He's very kind, and cares for all of us individually. I saw you blushing when you were speaking with him, Neji." Lee elbowed him in the side with a wink.

Neji flushed. "I just met him Lee. Don't be ridiculous."

"If you say so," Lee shrugged.

"Can anyone go in to the palace library?"

"Ah, you wouldn't know would you? Since it's the law, everyone in the Uchiha kingdom is literate. So yes, the royal library is open to the royal family and us servants or anyone that wishes to use it."

Neji felt his heart lift at the thought of so many books…a true royal collection!

Gai laughed at the far-away look in his eyes. "We'll see if you have any time to even be reading, Neji! For now though, let's get you some clothes. I imagine you'll be wanting something other to wear than your uniform and those clothes you've been wearing your entire journey."

"Oh!" Neji gasped remembering suddenly. "I-I left my money in my room," Neji bit his lip.

"Don't worry about it! Let us buy you some clothes and you can pay us back in your own time. You get wages for your work here, by the way."

Neji flushed. "Th-thank you. Although…it seems like an awfully good deal, doesn't it? If you work at the palace, you get free board and you get paid. How come more people don't do it?"

"Ah…there are much better paying jobs in the city, people tend to go for those. Also, people are a bit frightened of the royal family. Legend has it that they have extraordinary powers; their eyes can see through any illusion and they can breathe balls of fire. However, in all my time here, I've never seen Itachi nor any of his family do any such thing so I don't believe in the whole lot of it. It's like that saying about the Hyuga; that their eyes are so keen, they can see through stone. I don't believe it," Gai said shaking his head as they headed out to the courtyard.

Neji hid a smile, grateful for his colored lenses._ If only you knew. If only you knew!_ Neji shook his head, and followed Lee and Gai out to the market, excited at the prospect of new clothes.

**a/n**: Yay for clothes shopping lol. Anyways, let me know what you think of Itachi…so don't forget to review! I hope you enjoyed, and see ya next chappie!


	11. Chapter 10

**a/n**: Thank you for your lovely reviews everyone! I really appreciate every single one of them! (**Celestialfae-yes, you're right. Neji wears his special cloak in the Uchiha Kingdom, and he'll only wear the dresses to parties so that Itachi won't recognize him.)** Anyways…in this chapter, we get some itaneji flirtation, and poor Neji has nightmares. No warnings, disclaimer on my profile…enjoy!

Chapter 10

_Later that night…_

Neji sighed happily as he fingered the durable material of his new clothes. He hadn't used an exorbitant amount of money (from the wages he would receive for his work, he suspected that he could pay Gai and Lee back in a month or so in addition to also setting aside a little bit for himself), and he'd gotten very good deals on good-colored, durable cloths. He would have to wait until he wanted any finer materials, but for now he was happy with what he'd gotten.

He had a bolt of grey, purple and brown cotton, in addition to some other articles of clothing. Right now, he was wearing a navy blue peasant blouse of a long black skirt. He was sitting down with the women at one of the tables watching people gather in the kitchen for the Konoha gang dinner.

Neji raised an eyebrow as a huge crowd of men and women streamed in through the kitchen doors. "Are there normally this many people?"

"No. It's the monthly meeting tonight."

"Oh. Kushina, do you want help?"

"Yes, please. Could you start bringing food to the table, Neji? And Karin, get all the men off the table and make them wait while we load up."

Neji hid a small smile at the sight of Karin yelling at the large crowd of people and forcing them to move away while he and Kushina placed the food on the table.

"I love seeing new faces!" a rather blue-looking man with shark gills boomed. "It looks like we have a couple of young members this month!"

Neji rolled his eyes; what was it with Konoha and their obsession with the new members?

Finally, Karin let everyone swarm back to the big table where they all squeezed on to benches. Kakashi had just stood up when the kitchen door banged open and a teenager stuck his head in.

"Am I late?" Prince Itachi asked, quirking an eyebrow. "Sorry; stupid question. I apologize for my lateness." He casually crossed the room, and squeezed in to the only open spot...which happened to be at the end of the bench, right next to Neji.

Neji turned his head away, feeling the beginnings of a blush. In any other situation, he would've had the right to try his luck with Itachi, but he was a commoner now. He had no right to meddle in the affairs of nobles...Well, he would have to check on that; he'd go to the library and read a book on Uchiha laws and history before he made any decisions.

"I didn't know that you're part of the gang," Itachi murmured as everyone turned their attention to the head of the table.

"I still don't know yet," Neji murmured back.

"I'm sure you'll get in. Kakashi always has a certain partiality to a pretty face," Itachi winked at him.

Neji scoffed and turned back to Kakashi who was droning on about gang finances. _Don't judge him, don't judge him, don't judge him…Ok, well he does sort of seem like the teensiest bit like a smartass. _

"And finally…moving on to new business! We have two incoming members tonight, and one old one returning. Might Gai is back," the table exploded with applause, and Neji flinched.

"You startle easily, don't you?" Itachi raised an eyebrow.

Neji didn't even bother responding.

"And his apprentice, Rock Lee will be sparring with me tomorrow morning in addition to a new student he picked up along the way. However, considering that Neji has beaten Lee in every spar they've had together over the last two weeks, Neji doesn't need to undergo a practice match, but will be assigned to kitchen duty with Kushina in the evenings."

Neji shifted uncomfortably before smiling awkwardly under the curious stares of the entire gang.

"Stop staring at him before he turns in to a tomato. Go on, eat, you can stare at him later," Kakashi interrupted good-naturedly.

"I'm not a tomato," Neji muttered under his breath.

Lee laughed from his position next to Neji. "Well, you were certainly turning very red."

Neji sighed and moved forward to fill his plate with food.

"So, what did I tell you? I assure you, Kakashi definitely lets any of the girls in without much trouble," Itachi grinned.

Neji bit back a nervous smile. "What observations would you raise that on, sir?"

Lee chimed in helpfully. "Neji's a boy, my lord!"

Neji shook his head. "Thank you, Lee. I don't think that…" Neji cut himself off.

"I did not forget that fact, Lee," Itachi picked up where Neji had left off. "You really are quite taciturn aren't you? Just when you let go of your inhibitions, you suddenly draw back in to your shell again."

"What were you saying about Kakashi-san, my lord?" Neji decided to ignore Itachi's previous statement.

Itachi smiled suddenly. "All of the girls here have never had to have a practice match against Kakashi."

Kushina raised an eyebrow from across the table. "Excuse me? Itachi-kun?"

"Except for Kushina," Itachi amended before taking a spoonful of soup. "The singular exception. Shizune was a local doctor who he had to pay in the beginning, Karin was training with Sasuke, Sakura was his own student, Konan…well, no one's really sure what happened with Konan but one day she sort of showed up."

Neji smiled softly. "Either that, or perhaps Kakashi is simply an excellent judge of character."

Lee, Karin, and the rest of the people around him stared.

"What?"

"You just made a joke," Karin said in disbelief. "Did you hear that Kushina?"

"And he smiled! You have not shown us a single truly youthful smile since we met three weeks ago, Neji!" Lee was beaming with pride.

"See, Itachi-kun has such a good influence on people," Kushina sighed. "Not as good as my husband though. Oh, Neji dear-this is my husband, Namikaze Minato, and my son Uzumaki Naruto."

Neji blinked at the sight of two nearly identical blondes smiling at him.

"Nice to meet you Neji. I heard from Gai earlier that you don't know very much about Uchiha."

"No, not really…my parents, they didn't teach me very much about the Uchiha."

"Sounds a bit fishy, don't you think?" the younger blonde, Naruto spoke with his mouth full.

"I would not be sitting at this table if Kakashi had not given his permission," Neji's spoke thinly. "I have nothing against the Uchiha family. I make my own decisions."

"Hey, I didn't mean to offend you 'ttebayo! Like you said, Kakashi has a good sense of judgement!" Naruto gestured wildly.

"It's alright," Neji sighed. "I've just been getting that a lot."

"And? You said you make your own decisions. Do you prefer our rule?" Itachi's eyes sparkled strangely for a moment.

Neji paused. "I still know nothing about it, but…You have given me clothes, a job, and a place to stay. I have no reason to dislike you."

Itachi grinned, and Neji felt the urge to wipe the smirk off his face.

"Yet," he added smugly, turning back to his food.

Itachi mimed being stabbed in the heart. "Ah, Neji…you wound me. You haven't fallen for the endless charms and graces of my family? By the way, the food is very good. Did you make any of it?"

"The soup," Neji said shortly. "And you're the only one I've ever laid eyes upon."

Itachi sighed mockingly. "So cutting and cruel, Neji. My, you'll make a cold wife for whoever marries you."

Neji froze for a moment. _Does he know? But…he has no reason to suspect who I am. He doesn't know about the glasses, he doesn't know anything about me-_

"Itachi, you mustn't say things like that to girls. They'll get offended," Kushina admonished him.

"I did not mean to offend you," Itachi said, eyeing Neji closely. He hadn't missed when Neji had tensed up and gone very pale. "Will you forgive my rudeness?"

Neji set his spoon down to cover his shaking hands. "It's alright," he muttered. "I…I apologize for my rude behavior as well."

"It's fine. You know, if you're looking for books on Uchiha law and history…I recall you said that you could read and write. If you can find me tomorrow, I may be able to provide you with a few recommendations."

"That would be very helpful." Neji allowed the warm feeling washing over him to take away the fear from his recent memories. "Thank you."

"It's no trouble." Itachi pushed his empty plate. "The meeting was entertaining, but unfortunately I have to get back to my studies. I'll see all of you around." With that, he got up from the table and left.

Neji turned to Kushina. "Can he really just leave like that?"

"Well, he is the prince, dear. However, once the business meeting is over you can leave but most people hang around for the food."

"Well, in that case, may I be excused as well? It's been a long day, and I'm rather tired…"

"Of course, dear! I'll wake you tomorrow morning when it's time for you to start work."

"Good night!" Neji waved before exiting the kitchens and wandering back to his room. Itachi seemed like a very strange person; he treated everyone as if he knew them very well (which he probably did), but had it been Neji's imagination or had he been…_flirting_ with him?

Neji sighed; he didn't have a chance. He was a commoner and Itachi was the prince of the kingdom…

Neji paused. Actually, maybe he _did_ have a chance. Neji snorted; why did he care about it or not anyways? He would just have to wait until tomorrow to run by the palace library and pick up a history book. If he wanted to stay hidden away from his father, he couldn't run around flirting with princes…

Well, it wouldn't hurt to run by the library and pick up a book anyways. Especially if Itachi recommended it to him…Neji laughed out loud, and ducked in to his room.

He brushed and plaited his long hair, took out his contact lenses and curled up on his bed beneath the provided blanket. So far, he was succeeding at running away from home.

Running away from his past was entirely different matter. Neji hid his face under the blanket, even as he imagined that he could see his father's hands, reaching out for him in the dark.

It was going to be a very long night.

**a/n: **Aw…poor Neji is having nightmares :( If you leave reviews, then Neji will get some sleep tonight! Anyways…so we're finally getting some itaneji fluff in the story! *yay* So let me know what you thought of this chapter, and I'll see ya next time! (Sorry about the short chappie…but the majority of this story is written at midnight on school days. I'm trying hard!)


	12. Chapter 11

**a.n**: Hey y'all! So this is chapter eleven…we get more cuteness, and Neji meets another old nightmare. Disclaimer on my profile, no warnings…and I managed to stuff some KakaIru in there. Onward!

Chapter 11

The next morning, true to her word, Neji woke to Kushina pounding on his door. Neji glanced despairingly out the window, and realized it wasn't even light yet. He was getting more and more used to waking up at earlier times since he had been travelling with Gai and Lee for so long, but sometimes it was still difficult; he'd woken up countless times that night from terrifying nightmares.

"I'm up!" he called out. "I'll be out in five minutes!"

"Alright!" she called through the door. Neji grimaced when she moved on to the next door and was greeted by a grumpy string of curse words.

Five minutes later, Neji was dressed in his cleaning uniform and bid his good mornings to the others before slipping in to the kitchen for breakfast.

"Did you sleep well?" Chiyo croaked. "I went past your room last night, and I thought I heard you crying out for help."

"I slept well, thank you," Neji lied. "I'm sure you must have misheard ."

"I may be old, but my ears are in perfect condition," Chiyo handed him a bowl full of oatmeal. "Go on, eat up. The others will be down soon enough."

"Thank you," Neji murmured absently. He was supposed to head up to Deidara's office/laboratory when he had eaten, but he wasn't sure if he could find his way up there again.

Karin appeared in the kitchen doorway before dragging herself over to the table and plonking down beside Neji.

"U-um…are you alright, Karin?"

He was greeted by a snore. Neji sighed and was about to turn back to his gruel when he stood up in alarm. "Chiyo-san, you aren't really-"

Chiyo clashed the metal pot and its lid right next to Karin's ear, causing her to sit bolt right up and scream.

Chiyo chuckled in amusement before sliding a bowl of oatmeal in front of Karin. "Works every time," she confided in Neji. "The girl's never awake in the mornings."

Neji shook his head. _Everyone's mad around here_.

XXX

_At noon…_

Neji stretched and sighed with relief. His work was finally over until the evening shift! He started walking away from the supply closet when Karin swooped in on him.

"Oh, you're not done yet!"

Neji pouted. "What? What did I miss?"

"Nothing big," Karin smirked evilly. "All you have to do is take Prince Itachi's meal up to him in his private rooms."

Neji obediently followed Karin down to the kitchen. "But…I don't even know where they are. And Deidara-san didn't say anything about that."

Karin cackled. "Everyone hates that job. He just sits there and doesn't even notice you're in the room. Humph!" Karin snorted and turned his nose up in to the air. "What sort of boy doesn't notice when _I'm_ in the room? A crazy one!"

Neji sighed. Well, he should have expected it…but honestly, how bad could it be?

Honestly, not that bad. Karin had guided Neji all the way up to Itachi's private apartments and then promptly departed telling him that he could just let himself in and that if Itachi wasn't in his sitting room, than he would most likely be in his bedroom.

Neji cautiously poked his head through the door while balancing the tray in one hand. "Sir?"

Itachi wasn't in the sitting room, so going on Karin's advice, Neji went through the sitting room only to find himself in a hall with five doors in it.

"Sir?" he called out, a bit louder this time. Deciding to try his luck, he knocked on the first door in front of him.

Itachi stirred faintly, draw out of his thoughts by the timid knock on the door. What idiot was interrupting his studies? He hated going over the tax forms for the kingdom, but honestly…

Grumbling, he strode over to the door and pulled it open, prepared to unleash the irritation that had built up over the long hours over poring over small print and countless calculations. "What do you-oh."

Neji squeaked in surprise when the door flew open and Itachi glared furiously at him before his expression softened. "Oh, it's you. What do you want?"

"U-um. Your food," Neji said, thrusting the tray under Itachi's nose. "I'm sorry if I bothered you, sir."

"No, it's no trouble. I've just been doing taxes all day." Itachi moved back to his desk. "If you could put the tray on the desk please?"

"Of course." Neji moved forward and placed the food on his desk. "Taxes are rather-" Neji cut himself off. He was a commoner; he shouldn't know anything about doing taxes, much less taxes for a whole kingdom. "I mean, are taxes particularly vexing, sir?"

"You were about to say something else."

"I merely rephrased my question. Is there anything else you need sir?"

"Wait a moment; I'll give you those recommendations for some history books that I promised you last night." Itachi reached over for a slip of paper and a pen.

Itachi felt puzzled when Neji looked taken aback; had he really not expected him to remember?

"Thank you, sir." Their hands brushed when Itachi handed him a slip of paper with writing on it; Neji glanced down at the ground before looking up again.

"Thank you for the food, Neji."

"Any time, sir." Neji curtsied politely.

"Why do you insist on calling me 'sir'? Everyone in the palace calls me Itachi, you know."

Neji froze; yet another invitation in to Itachi's personal life. "That will not be necessary, _sir_," he said, quickly regaining his wits. "Good day to you." Neji turned around and fled from the room before Itachi could call him back.

Itachi raised an eyebrow at Neji's quick retreat. It seemed that it would be more difficult to get Neji to come out from his shell than he'd thought.

XXX

Neji sighed and leaned against the wall outside of Itachi's apartments for a moment before heading off to the royal library. He'd cleaned it earlier that morning, so hopefully he wouldn't get too lost…

Neji looked down at the slip of paper that Itachi had given him and blinked at the titles. There were at least fifteen different books, ranging from _History of the Uchiha; The unabridged edition of the Law_ to _Secrets of the Royal family: How Uchiha Madara drank his tea and more!_

Neji crept in to the library before approaching the librarian, a young man with a soft brown ponytail and a scar across his nose. He was lying asleep on his desk until Neji gentled jostled his arm.

He jolted awake. "Who-oh. You're the new member of Konoha…Neji, is it?"

Neji thought back to the dinner, but couldn't recall seeing the man there. "Yes. Um…I don't recall meeting you. Who are you?"

"I'm Iruka." He yawned and stretched. "I left right after the business meeting, so I doubt you saw me. What can I help you with, Neji?"

"I was wondering where I could locate these titles?"

Iruka leaned over and looked at his slip of paper before chuckling. "History nut?"

"I just…well, I suppose you can think about it like that," Neji finished lamely. "Where could I find them?"

Iruka laughed again and swiveled around so that he was facing the bookshelves. "It's the two rows farthest to the right. The books are arranged in alphabetical order by author's last name. Also, since you're new I'll do you a favor-you can check them out without a card, but have them back by two weeks."

"Um…thanks," Neji's smiled cheerfully at Iruka.

"Oh, wait…Neji!" Iruka called out to him in a hushed whisper. "Have you seen Kakashi around?"

Neji raised an eyebrow; why would Iruka care about Kakashi's whereabouts? "No, I haven't seen him, sorry."

Iruka smiled cheerfully, but wasn't fully able to mask the unhappy tilt of his eyebrows. "Ok. Thanks anyways."

Neji raised a hand in response before scurrying away under the glares of the other people in the library.

"Author's last name, author's last name…" Neji murmured as he danced down the two rows. He obviously couldn't take out all fifteen books at once, so he would have to make his choices based on their informational content.

After half an hour or so, Neji had selected three volumes (A history of the kingdom, an annotated version of the Uchiha Law, and a book about the royal families). As he made his way out of the library, he noticed an odd figure standing in the shadows. He had an oddly-shaped torso, and suddenly Neji realized who it was and nearly dropped his books.

_Kidomaru?_

**a/n**: *gasp* Kidomaru! What on earth is he doing here? Well, you'll just have to wait and find out *evillaughter*. But really…anyways, don't forget to review and I'll see you in chapter 12! Oh, and sorry it took this long to update, but I was trying to respond to the numerous requests for KakaIru (the librarian was originally Anko, but this seems more fitting. I hope you guys are satisfied-although just warning you, we won't extensively be following their relationship. But it will still be there, winking at you from the side occasionally.) I hope you enjoyed!


	13. Chapter 12

**a/n**: Thanks for all the lovely reviews guys! Hey y'all! In this chappie, we see some more of Kidomaru, and Neji gets to save someone's life! *duh duh duh* Anyways, disclaimer on my profile, no warnings…enjoy!

Chapter 12

Neji took off down the hall before Kidomaru would notice. Oh gods, what was _Kidomaru_ of all people doing here? As far as he knew, Orochimaru's castle was…still in his own lands. Orochimaru had no quarrel with the Uchiha, but they certainly weren't visiting as guests, so what was he doing here?

Well, it didn't particularly matter, did it? Kidomaru wouldn't recognize Neji because of his eyes, and that was all that matter. Neji paused for a moment, and regarded his reflection in a mirror on the side of one of the walls. His hair was growing far too long anyways. Perhaps he could ask Kushina to cut it for him.

XXX

_Three weeks later…_

Lee and Gai stopped dead at the sight of Neji sitting on a barrel in the courtyard while Kushina carefully snipped off chunks of his hair.

"Neji!" Lee shouted in horror. "What are you doing to your _hair_?!"

Neji sighed. He really had hoped that he could avoid a huge scene. He'd been thinking about it the idea for weeks; in the end Kushina had actually been the one to offer, insisting that hair that long would be a nuisance in the kitchen. "Kushina is cutting it for me. What else does it look like?"

"But-but it's so pretty! Why would you cut it?!" Lee danced around in agony.

Neji turned his face away slightly. "…I felt like a change for once. It's not a big deal, Lee. Don't fret so much."

Kushina continued snipping away. "Oh, Neji did I tell you? I have a serving uniform for you tonight-Itachi's hosting a formal dinner with some nobles in town tonight, and you and I are on serving duty with the other girls."

"Other nobles in town?"

"Well, the royal family isn't the only family with blue blood in Kunimitsu. There's the Subaku, the rest of the Uchiha, which turns out to be quite an enormous extended family, the Suna delegation, the Akatsuki ambassador, and…hm…oh, the Hatake clan-"

Neji choked. "Kakashi is…noble born?!"

Kushina laughed. "Didn't you know? Of course he is! He's also Prince Sasuke's teacher."

"Why isn't he with Prince Sasuke then?"

"Sasuke has many people to guard him while he's away. He remained behind in order to protect Itachi." Kushina snorted. _Of course, he didn't stick around because of Iruka. No, sir._

Neji's lip twitched. "How…gallant of him."

"Quite," Kushina stepped back and breathed a sigh of relief. "All done. I did my best to make the ends even, but some bits are bit tetchy-"

Neji shook his now shoulder-blade length hair and grinned. "It's perfect. Thank you so much!" Both of them ignored Lee sobbing in the corner while Gai attempted to console him.

Neji headed off for his room, but Kushina called after him. "Mind you, come half an hour early to the kitchens tonight! I'll help you get all dressed up," she winked at him.

Smiling, he waved back at her before hurrying off to his books. The Uchiha family and there history was really quite intriguing.

XXX

_Later that evening…_

Neji had arrived at the kitchens a half hour earlier as planned, and Kushina had promptly dragged him off to a room in behind the kitchen that mirrors, a closet, and stools. Kushina had brought a mysteriously bulging bag that Neji eyed apprehensively.

Kushina rummaged around in the bag for a moment before drawing something out and throwing it at him. "Put this on. There are folding screens in the back of the room-"

"I see them," Neji said hastily. He quickly unfolded one and put the dress on. "Why…are we wearing _white_ dresses if we're serving food?"

"That's the petticoat, dear," Kushina said absently. "I have to measure you overdress now. Come out."

Neji stepped out and stood on a low stool in while Kushina slipped a silky garment over his head and immediately set to work shortening the skirt. "You actually fit surprisingly well in this…this is Tayuya's uniform, but she said that she had a family emergency and ran off five minutes before you got here."

Neji frowned. There was something familiar about Tayuya's name and face, but he couldn't recall what it was…

Ten minutes later, Kushina had appropriately adjusted Neji's clothing. "Tayuya was set to get a new one soon since she got a bit taller this last year so this is yours now. You take care of it-this uniform is for special occasions." It was a violet slip that fell lightly over his white petticoat and opened slightly at the bodice and the skirt with full sleeves. The bottom of the dress brushed over his feet if he bent his knees only the slightest bit.

Kushina was still talking. "Now…ribbons for your hair, since its long. I think silver will do-oh, come here stop staring off in to the distance, Neji!" she shoved him down on to a stool and began weaving silver colored ribbons through his hair.

"All done. Take a look in the mirror, and then we've got to run. Very important people are going to be at the dinner, so it's important that you be on your best manners. All you have to do is wheel the cart out when Chiyo tells you to, and then wheel it back in when I tell you to. Nice and simple. Don't speak unless you're spoken to, and just stand look pretty while waiters take the soup off your cart. Understand?"

"Yes."

"Now, there's no cooking for us tonight- the afternoon girls did all that. Oh, hurry, _hurry_ we'll be late and then Chiyo will fire us-" Kushina picked up her skirts and started running.

Neji shook his head and jogged after her. Kushina really was far too much of a worrier.

XXX

Neji sighed as he stood patiently behind his cart and waited for the servers to continue to deliver bowls to the feast table. As a matter of fact, it rather seemed like a very important dinner-he could see that everyone was spiffed up to a certain degree, and that Itachi seemed rather wary and reserved.

Suddenly, Itachi's eyes lighted on him and Neji's jaw nearly dropped when Itachi winked at him slyly.

Neji raised an eyebrow in response, his heart beating a mile a minute. As it turned out, he _did_ have a chance with Itachi-not that he could ever take it. His life was meant for running away. Anyways, Itachi's mother had actually been a girl who sold flowers in the local market when King Fugaku saw her. So, technically, it was possible. Only, it was absolutely impossible in Neji's situation.

Neji paused as someone pored over the cart for a moment. Neji gasped when he saw the server slip a small glass vial in to his uniform pocket and start off for Prince Itachi's place at the table.

Neji grit his teeth and dashed out from behind the cart and stopped in front of the server. "What did you put in that soup?"

The server ducked his head. "I didn't put anything in the soup."

Neji held his ground. "I saw you. I know what I saw."

"Get out of the way, little girl. You're holding the prince from his soup. He won't be happy with you." The server's eyes glinted menacingly.

Neji didn't move. "You know, I've never seen you around the palace before. Who are you? What's your name?"

"Get out of the way. I won't say it again."

Neji activated his Byakugan and saw the vial in the man's pocket. He opened his mouth and shouted.

"WHAT DID YOU PUT IN THE PRINCE'S SOUP?"

The whole hall went silent, and everyone turned and stared. Neji breathed hard, and glared at the mysterious server.

The man hissed, and suddenly, he _transformed._ Now, in front of Neji, Kidomaru stood with all six of his arms and a deadly expression on his face. Neji gasped and stumbled backwards a few steps; after the incident in the hallway, he hadn't seen Kidomaru for the following three weeks-in fact, he had been starting to think that his imagination was starting to get carried away with him. He froze as memories of the cruel things that had happened to him rushed in to his head and his mind went totally blank.

He was jolted from his panicked haze by Kidomaru.

"You little shit!" he snarled. He threw the bowl off to the side and rushed at Neji.

Neji danced out of the way and landed a blow on his ribs. Everyone was shouting and rushing towards them when something flew in to his back and knocked him over, jarring his head against the stone floor. Neji was kicking and twisting out of the person's hold and oh god Kidomaru was coming to get him again-

The weight vanished off his back; Neji dizzily tried to sit up and look around. Itachi was standing over him forming hand seals and gathering his energy for something, and behind him…

Neji twisted his head with some effort and was shocked by the sight that met his eyes. Tayuya was kicking and clawing and screeching while a dozen men struggled to hold her and a man with red hair raised a flute in front of her eyes. She went pale and instantly stopped struggling, but it was too late-he'd snapped the flute in half.

Neji gripped his head in his hands and tried to will the pain away. He had to get up, he had to get up before Itachi got hurt!

Instead, Itachi was suddenly kneeling next to him. "Are you alright?"

"Hit my head," Neji mumbled. "Hurts."

Itachi's face was suddenly very worried. "Hang in there Neji. You did very well."

Neji groaned; everything was too bright and loud and noisy. Then, Sakura was by his side, gently cajoling him to his feet and leading him away while speaking brusquely to someone. Now, he was in a quiet, dark place and _gods_ that was so much better.

Sakura gently lay him down on something soft and stroked his hair. "Rest, Neji. I think he has a concussion," she turned to someone else, and Neji allowed his eyelids to fall shut and fell in to a terrible nightmare where he relived the terror of Kidomaru from when he had been thirteen.

**a/n**: So…that was chapter 12! (Aaaargh why are the chapters so short? I'm sorry!) Good, bad? I know it's not _really _relevant right now (I know that some of you are thinking it) but it becomes important next chappie. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed-don't forget to review, and I'll see you next chapter!


	14. Chapter 13

**a/n**: Hey everyone! Thank you for all your lovely reviews! *hugs* Anyways, here's chapter 13…Neji gets a new job, and just some itaneji cuteness. Onwards! (No warnings-disclaimer on my profile. Enjoy!)

Chapter 13

Neji eyes fluttered open and he groaned softly before shifting himself up on to his elbows. "Where…?"

Sakura looked relieved to see him awake. "Do you remember what happened last night, Neji?"

Neji frowned. "I…I saw K-I mean, someone slip something…white powder…in to Prince Itachi's soup. Then I didn't recognize him so I got everyone's attention and tried to stop him from serving it…and there was a fight and then Tayuya slammed me in to the ground. I really don't remember much else."

"When Tayuya slammed your head in to the ground, you had a minor concussion. You'll be alright with another day's rest. You were very brave, Neji. You saved Prince Itachi's life."

"I…" Neji trailed off. _Shit._ "I'm honored to serve my country. Although I wish I hadn't just sort of screamed and collapsed."

Shizune appeared behind Sakura with a glass of water. "You didn't just scream and collapse, deary. You managed to break Kidomaru's rib and block of a major tenketsu node, kid. You're plenty of proof that you belong in the Konoha fighters. Now, drink up. You're to stay in the infirmary until tomorrow evening. You aren't to leave until Sakura does a check up on you and lets you out. Understand? Now, Prince Itachi said he would drop by later today and explain everything to you. He'll be here soon. You can eat something while you're waiting. Sakura-"

"Yes, Shizune." The two women hurried off, leaving Neji to his thoughts.

To his surprise Itachi came hurtling through the door barely two seconds after Sakura and Shizune had left. "Is he alright? I-"

"S-sir?" Neji clutched his chest; Itachi had startled him rather badly.

Itachi relaxed. "Oh, thank goodness. Are you alright? No one's been able to tell me anything since they dragged you off to the infirmary last night." Itachi pulled a chair over next to Neji's bedside.

"I'm alright. Sakura says I have a minor concussion, and that I'm to rest for a couple of days." Neji blinked. "I think that's the most energetic I've seen you. Ever…sir."

"I was worried about you."

Neji smiled gently. "Thank you."

Itachi's hand twitched suddenly, but Neji chose not comment. "I'm sure you want to know what happened…it must have been very confusing for you."

Neji frowned. "Yes. Why-how did he change? At first he was a normal person, but he suddenly-" Neji shuddered. He couldn't disclose the fact that he knew Kidomaru, though; how would a commoner like him know a nobleman like him in the first place? It would look very fishy.

Itachi placed a comforting hand over his own. "The man's name was Kidomaru; he's one of Orochimaru's sons. He was under a glamor-a spell that changes one's appearance for a fixed amount of time. Either his time ran out, or he chose to terminate the spell which is why he reverted to his true form."

"I-I see." Suddenly, Neji remembered. "But-Tayuya! Why…why did she…?"

Itachi's grip on his hands tightened slightly. "It would appear that, for the past year, Tayuya has been spying and formulating plans to end my life."

Neji gasped softly. "B-but, who is she? Why would she want to kill you?"

Itachi sighed. "I was a fool not to realize it, but Tayuya is a fairly common name, and red hair is also fairly common in this area of the kingdom. Tayuya is Orochimaru's daughter."

"Orochimaru?" Neji's mind was going a mile a minute. Of course that was why he recognized her-she had been there when Orochimaru had put for his proposal for his hand in marriage to Kidomaru. "Have the Uchiha done something to offend him?" Everyone knew who Orochimaru was-it seemed innocent enough.

Itachi didn't seem bothered, and moved on. "Orochimaru has always been angry with Uchiha ever since Sasuke left his exclusive training after three years and ran off to the military. However, we will not know whether or not Orochimaru was involved until we receive a response from him; I personally do not believe it was him, though. It wasn't very well thought out, and it just didn't have that…_insidious_ quality about it."

"Tayuya worming her way in to the palace and spying on you for a year doesn't feel insidious?"

Itachi smiled dryly. "I different sort of insidious than that. It did come as quite a shock, though."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It doesn't happen too often, but when it does, it comes as quite a surprise." Itachi sighed moodily; Neji tentatively squeezed his hands in a comforting way, and Itachi smiled fondly at him. "Do you have any other questions about what happened?"

"No, not particularly."

Itachi leaned in closer. "I wanted to thank you," he said seriously. "You saved my life, Neji. I had no idea that this would happen."

Neji's mouth went dry. "I-I am glad to serve my country, sir."

Itachi withdrew and looked pleased. "You seem to make your decisions rather quickly. Are you normally this decisive?"

Neji sighed. _I knew he would take it that way. Of course he never misses a chance to tease me. _"I don't quite know, sir."

Itachi laughed. "Regardless, I am thankful for it." His face returned to a serious expression, and he spoke firmly. "I've had you moved to be my own personal servant. After the incident, there are few people I can trust as it is, and I would enjoy working directly with someone that I need not fear."

Neji started, and his hand slipped out of Itachi's. "Wh-what? But, I've only been here for three weeks! How could you trust me?"

Itachi stared at him. "Isn't it obvious? You nearly got yourself killed for me."

Neji's hands shook. "You're mad," he told him, his voice trembling. "Absolutely mad. Why would you place your life in the hands of a person you've known for three weeks when someone you knew for a year just betrayed you?"

"Tayuya never once placed her life on the line for me."

Neji had nothing to say to that.

"Does it upset you that much? Being near me."

Neji's face closed up instantly, and Itachi regretted opening his mouth in the first place. "No, sir. I am…happy to work with you, sir."

"I'm glad." Itachi stood up. "When you are released from the infirmary, I expect you to start working for me immediately. You may find Deidara and ask him what to do, and where to go. I will provide you with your initial instructions."

"Yes, sir."

Itachi paused. Then, he ruffled Neji's hair before striding away. "Get well, soon, Neji."

Neji opened his mouth, but Itachi was already gone.

XXX

The following evening, Neji nervously knocked on the door of Deidara's laboratory/office. "Deidara-san?"

"Come in!"

Neji cautiously edged through the doorway; the last time he had come in to ask Deidara where the extra mops were, he'd nearly had his eyebrows singed off by an explosion. "Prince Itachi said to come to you before I started work again."

Deidara sat a table, busily molding clay with his hands. "Ah, Neji! Come closer-don't worry, this one isn't primed for explosion yet."

Neji came over and sat down at the table across from him. "So…what does a personal servant do, exactly? And how is this going to affect my current work schedule?"

Deidara continued manipulating the clay with his hands. "As Itachi's personal servant, you don't have to do cleaning duty in the mornings although I will have you on kitchen duty in the evenings twice a week now rather than every day. A personal servant does whatever his master asks him to do, in addition to other basic duties of making sure that he is taken care of; that means that you are in charge of making sure his apartments are clean, that the laundry girls are prompt with his clothing, and that he gets fed."

"It sounds rather like a job for a nursemaid," Neji said, propping his face up on his hands. "Why would he need someone to do all that for him anyways?"

"Right now, Prince Itachi is single-handedly running the kingdom while the rest of the royal family is away. Normally, King Fugaku would be running most of the state affairs, and Queen Mikoto would be running trade meetings and the finances of the kingdom. Instead, Itachi is doing _all_ of this by himself, and continues his educational studies on top of everything."

"Why doesn't he enlist the help of his family? Not that I would know anything about it," Neji said hastily, "but wouldn't it make more sense to divide the labor among the family?"

Deidara sighed. "Ever since an incident in his childhood, the Prince has been very unwilling to trust his extended family."

"What happened?"

"We do not speak of it now."

"Is it any history book I might find?"

"I doubt it." Deidara set his clay down on the table and moved over to the sink to wash his hands. "Anyways, you won't need a uniform for your new position; you can wear street clothes. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask any time."

"Alright," Neji said reluctantly. He hated not knowing things. "Thank you for your help, Deidara-san." Neji stood up and moved toward the door, only to squeak in surprise when the door banged open to reveal a deadpan redhead on the other side.

Neji glanced back at Deidara curiously before curtsying and leaving. What on earth was Sasori of the Red Sands doing in Deidara's workshop? Neji shuddered and moved on quickly; he had met Sasori several times of the course of his childhood, and Sasori honestly creeped him out with his non-stop talk of puppets. Whatever Sasori was doing with Deidara, he truly didn't want to know.

XXX

Neji slipped in to Itachi's waiting room and called out uncertainly. "Sir?"

To his surprise, he found Itachi pacing in his sitting room. "Ah, Neji. They let you out of the infirmary so soon?"

"Sakura said she saw no further reason to hold me, sir."

"Yes, well." Itachi sat down on a chair, and indicated that Neji seat himself across from him. "Did Deidara tell you what to do?"

"Yes. It seems like you're in rather desperate need of someone to take care of you, sir," Neji teased him.

Itachi snorted and leaned back in his chair. "I'm sure you're more than up for the job. What, pray tell, did Deidara tell you?"

"I need to bring you food, organize when people come and clean the room and your clothing, and do anything else you ask me to which I assume are other errands." Neji looked at Itachi expectantly.

"Correct." Itachi yawned. "I was also considering having you move your things up in to a spare room in my apartments here. Would you prefer that?"

Neji eyed him cautiously. Did he have some kind of ulterior motive? "Well, I suppose I wouldn't mind," Neji said slowly.

"Excellent. Feel free to move your things at your leisure. For now, though I do have something I would like to ask of you."

Neji stood up and dusted his skirt off, thinking that Itachi would ask him to go on an errand. "What is it?"

"I'm not going to send you off haring through the streets. Oh, and if I ever _do_ send you outside, feel free to ask someone to go with you. It's dangerous for a girl to go outside alone."

Neji sighed. "Then what was it you wanted me to do, sir?"

"Tell me more about yourself."

"I beg your pardon?" Neji stared, shocked.

Itachi's lips quirked upwards. "Sit down and tell me more about yourself. You've been here for nearly a month, and I still know very little about you." _Not to mention the very interesting items in your room. Of course I had your belongings searched before deciding to employ you as a personal servant-a set of colored eye lenses, a golden ring, a silver thimble, and a diamond necklace. Not to mention those three glittering squares of fabric…just who are you, Neji? Certainly not the daughter of a secluded community in the forest. You never would have had access to such items._

Neji's hands tightened, but he sat down and submitted to the questioning. "What would you like to know?"

"Your family."

Neji drew a shuddering breath. "I do not speak of my family to anyone, sir."

"I am your employer, Neji. Need I remind you of that?"

"Then send me away," Neji said instantly. "I can't tell you anything, sir."

"Why not?"

"I am running away from them!" Neji said sharply. "I will not run the risk of them finding me and dragging me back to the forest."

"I am the prince of the Uchiha kingdom," Itachi said in disbelief. "I can protect you."

"My situation is unique," Neji said stubbornly. "Will that be all, sir?"

Itachi scowled; somehow, he always managed to say something that sent Neji fleeing back in to his shell of protection, not to mention that he hadn't been able to glean a single thing off of Neji. "…I suppose so. I suggest that you take the next hour or so and enlist Gai and Lee to help you move in to your room. After you're done, report to me in my study." Itachi stood up and left; a clear dismissal for Neji.

Neji left also, slightly shaken.

_Why do I feel so guilty that Itachi is upset with me?_

**a/n**: Daw, wasn't that cute? I know, I know-Neji is still in denial. But he'll get past that soon! Anyways, don't forget to review, and I'll see you next chappie!


	15. Chapter 14

**a/n**: Hey everyone! Updates have been kind of tetchy lately, but unfortunately this week is really busy…so this may very well be a one-update week (again…sorry!) Anyways, I present Chapter 14: in which Neji is in denial, and Lee tells a lie. Enjoy! (disclaimer on my profile, no warnings…enjoy!)

Chapter 14

Neji hummed as he straightened the haphazard piles of books in Itachi's study, lost in thought.

So far, he had successfully hidden from his family for over a year. Once again, it was the middle of winter, despicably cold and here in Kunimitsu City; also, in addition to snow and sleet, it _hailed._ Neji shuddered as he remembered the formidable size of the ice chunks falling out of the sky.

However, back to his family matters. Truly, he missed them terribly, but he couldn't afford to draw suspicion to himself by asking around, so he was still unaware of the state of affairs in his home.

Neji paused, and then continued working. Kunimitsu City had become his home now, and he felt rather disinclined to leave it…he had a new family now. He was far away from his father, who lusted after him, and Kidomaru had been executed shortly after Neji had been promoted to being Itachi's personal servant.

Working with Itachi was pleasant; they operated on similar intellectual levels, and although Neji couldn't express the true extent of his learning, he enjoyed having access to Itachi's private library and working with him over state papers.

Someone knocked on the frame, and Neji turned around. "What is it?"

Lee grinned at him from the doorway; when they had first met ago, Neji had been as tall as he was, but Neji swore that Lee had grown a foot taller over the last year. "Time for you to take a break, Neji. Everyone's eating downstairs; come join us my youthful flower!"

Neji laughed, but set down his duster. "Alright. Is this another grand scheme to get me together with another boy?"

Lee grinned mischievously. "Not at all!" he assured Neji. "I'm sure that you will like Gaara though; he's the prince of the Suna delegation and has quite a charming disposition…" he continued rambling on about Gaara's amazing qualities, and Neji just shook his head.

It had become a game for all of his friends to try and set him up with another man, while at the same time figuring out whether or not said man was gay.

Of course, Lee being Lee was actually trying to play matchmaker for Neji from the sheer goodness of his heart. Everyone else on the other hand…

Neji frowned and thought back to the beginning of their conversation. "Wait…Lee, when you said Gaara, did you mean _Lord Gaara Subaku_?"

Lee beamed. "But of course! There will be nothing less for more blossoming sister, Neji!"

"But he's a noble!" Neji said, shocked. "I doubt he'd even go in the kitchen, much less even bother meeting a _servant_."

"You're Prince Itachi's personal servant," Lee flashed a grin, and blinded Neji with sparkle of his teeth. "There's a difference."

Neji shook his head. Hopefully, Gaara wouldn't turn up-Neji had met Gaara when he was a princess, but Neji knew that Gaara had not recognized him yet. He had seen and bumped in to many people he had once known at the palace, and none of them had recognized him; his hair was now growing back down to his waist, but Neji knew his eyes would throw anyone off of the scent. The noble family of Hyuga had pale, nearly-white eyes; there was no other eye color present in the family.

Neji and Lee sat down at a kitchen table with the other workers, and Neji listened with mild interest to court gossip.

"Say Neji…" Karin leaned across the table. "Has Prince Itachi been seeing anyone?"

"How would I know?" Neji shrugged. "Why would I care, anyways?"

Karin tutted. "Neji, we've had this conversation about denial many, many times."

"I don't like him," Neji said coolly. "Wasn't I called down here because everyone wanted me to find out about Prince Gaara-"

Lee cut him off. "I lied," he said cheerfully. He handed Neji a meat bun and leaned back. "I just wanted an excuse for you to spend time with all of us."

The entire table gawked. "Did Lee really just…lie?" Sakura stared in disbelief. Ten-Ten looked like she was about to faint.

Neji burst out laughing, and laughed so hard he started crying. "Your faces," he choked. "You should have seen your faces!" he dissolved in to laughter again.

"What did you tell him we were going to call him down for, Lee?"

"I told him that we were going to set him up with Gaara Subaku!" Lee exclaimed happily.

"But…Prince Gaara left this morning."

"Neji wouldn't have known that because he's been running errands for Chiyo, Deidara, and Itachi in the market all morning," Lee beamed. "It was a successful lie, no?"

Karin smiled begrudgingly. "…Well done, Lee. Now, Neji, back to the topic of Prince Itachi…"

"What about him?" Neji said in exasperation. "I don't-"

"It's funny how before I even _say_ anything, you desperately announce that you aren't madly in love with him." Karin's eyes glittered.

"L-love? I didn't even say anything about _that_," Neji said crossly. "And it's only because every time you open your mouth about Prince Itachi, you ask-"

Itachi chose to enter the kitchens at that moment. "Ask what?" he sat down beside Neji at the table.

Neji stuttered to a halt, and Karin's smirk deepened. "We wanted to ask if you would be interested in playing a game with us," she purred.

Itachi raised an eyebrow. "…Ok…?"

Neji shifted uncomfortably when he realized that the entire attention of the table was fixated on the three of them. _Damn Karin. She set up this entire scenario. She knew that Lee would get me down here and then it would be only a matter of time before Itachi came to find me-_

Only a matter of time before Itachi came to find him? Neji supposed it was true; Itachi always had something for Neji to do.

"What game are we playing, Karin?" Sakura's eyes glinted with evil camaraderie at Karin.

"Neji has us guess the answer to a question, and whoever gets the question right gets a kiss!" Karin proclaimed triumphantly.

Neji blanched at the sight of several of the boys in addition to the many girls at the table garnering hopeful looks in their eyes; he was actually quite popular among the male staff. It just went to show how gay of a palace Kunimitsu City had.

"I-I really don't think-"

"Oh, don't be a spoilsport Neji. You'd crush all of their little hearts if you didn't give them a chance."

Neji sighed. "Alright, just let me think of a question." Neji hid a smirk; he was very talented at coming up with questions that no one could answer. Over the past year, he had let absolutely nothing about his family slip out. Perhaps he should pose a question about that? Or…

Neji smiled. "I've got it. The question is: What job did I occupy in my community before I ran away to Kunimitsu City?"

Everyone stared blankly, and Neji smirked. _No one's gleaning a kiss off of me!_

Everyone went around the table, and giggled or sighed in disappointment when they were wrong. Neji received a wide variety of guesses going from seamstress to a parlor maid. The oddest one came unsurprisingly from Lee who said that he picked flowers and sold them to trading caravans. Neji didn't even bother responding to that one and moved on.

Finally, everyone had gone around, but no one had guessed correctly. Surprisingly enough, no one had guessed he was a cook, for which Neji was grateful. He would have had to think about that one.

Neji beamed triumphantly at Karin. "Your turn, Karin, since no one could guess correctly."

Karin smiled. "Ah, but Prince Itachi hasn't guessed yet."

Neji blinked in surprise; it was true. Itachi hadn't offered his thoughts quite yet. Neji felt an anxious twinge in his stomach, but he dismissed it. There was no way Itachi could guess what he had used to be.

"You were the lady of the house from wherever you came from. No doubt you learned how to run a house, read, write and do your figures which are all things you are rather accomplished in."

Neji stared.

"Am I right?"

"…"

Karin crowed with glee. "He's right! Prince Itachi is right!"

The entire table burst in to a loud melee of confusion and jealous shouting. Neji automatically flinched, and found that he had somehow ended up pressing himself against Itachi's side.

Itachi instantly put his arm around Neji's waist to stop him from falling over, and somehow their faces were _extremely_ close. Itachi watched in fascination when Neji's eyes fluttered shut and he was bending down; their lips were almost within brushing distance when-

Suddenly the kitchen door banged open, and with it a gust of stormy winter air swirled in.

Everyone went dead silent, and Itachi and Neji withdrew from each other, both flushed slightly. No one took any notice as all eyes went on Kakashi who stood gasping for breath at the kitchen door.

Iruka sprang up from the table and rushed to Kakashi's side, patting his back and getting him to control his breathing. Kushina got up from the table and ran for a glass of water. She tried to press it in to his hands, but he caught his breath and waved her off. "There's no time for that! There's been an attack on our forces by the Bloody Mist gang down on the corner of Seishun and Kirihara-"

Everyone exploded in to motion.

"Are they still fighting?" Shizune rummaged around in a cupboard before pulling out a heavy bag of basic medical supplies.

"Yes, we'll need all the fighters we've got; it's really bad. They're completely outnumbered." Kakashi started out back in to the courtyard while Iruka followed him with a sword in hand. Neji made to follow; however, Itachi held him back.

"I have to go-" Neji attempted to pull away from his hands, but Itachi held him firmly.

"I don't want you to get hurt. Wait here for the others."

Neji turned on him in disbelief. "I'm perfectly capable of fighting with the others!"

Itachi cupped his face with his hands and smoothed away a strand of his hair. "Neji." His tone left no place for argument, and Neji was oddly breathless for a few moments.

There was a moment that seemed to last an eternity before Neji stepped back and looked at the floor submissively. "Stay safe."

Itachi nodded and raced out the door after the others.

Afterwards, Neji sat down hard at a kitchen table. Why had he let Itachi stop him from fighting? Itachi knew perfectly well how capable he was after the incident with Kidomaru, but he still hadn't let him go.

Neji blushed delicately as he remembered the raw emotion in Itachi's eyes barely a few moments ago.

He was hopelessly and madly in love with Itachi. And there was absolutely nothing he could do about it.

**a/n**: Yay for time skips ahahaha…anyways, I know their first kiss gets interrupted, but don't worry. It happens later Thanks for reading, and don't forget to review!


	16. Chapter 15

**a/n**: Hey everybody! Thank you for your lovely reviews! (Fast updates, I know ) Anyways, this is chapter 15…Neji _finally_ accepts his own feelings, and there's a plot afoot! No warnings, disclaimer on my profile…enjoy!

Chapter 15

Several hours later, Neji sat down next to Lee in the infirmary and started wrapping Lee's wounds.

"Why did you stay behind Neji? Once we arrived, the battle immediately turned in our favor, but I was surprised that you did not leap at the chance to prove yourself."

Neji began to gently clean a scrape on Lee's arm. "I was asked to stay back and wait for your return."

"By whom?"

"Prince Itachi."

Lee blinked in surprise. "Why would he do that? Kakashi said that we needed everyone."

Neji shrugged and carefully bandaged the wound. "I don't know."

"Surely you argued with him-"

"Of course I did. He did not change his order." Neji tied the bandage somewhat crossly and moved on to wipe the blood off of the rest of Lee's arm.

Lee was silent for a while. Finally, he spoke somewhat tentatively. "Neji…"

"Yes, Lee?"

"Are you positive that Prince Itachi doesn't have any feelings towards you?"

Neji paused, glanced at Lee's inscrutable face, and then continued wiping the blood off of Lee's arm. "I…I don't know how _he_ feels about me, and I don't care," Neji lied. He really did care for more than he should.

"Neji, you must have feelings for him. I can see it in your youthful expression every time you look at him."

"What does it matter, Lee? What does it matter if I have feelings for him?" Neji set down the damp cloth and looked at Lee in exasperation. "Honestly, everyone keeps poking their noses where they don't belong. If I have feelings for Itachi, it really doesn't concern you."

"It concerns me if my little sister is in denial about her feelings for the man she obvious loves," Lee said very seriously.

Neji's lips quirked. "Ah, but Lee, I'm a guy. Doesn't that make me your brother?"

Lee scowled and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. "You're not taking me seriously. Neji, you must confront your feelings. If you do love Prince Itachi-"

Neji immediately started to protest, but Lee cut him off.

"If you do love Itachi," he continued, "you should understand this, and you should let him know about your feelings. There is only one life to live, Neji, and you should be happy. You should spend the rest of your life at the side of the person you love most."

"Lee…" Neji was astonished. "Lee, I…" he gave up. "I understand what you are saying Lee. But I…I feel as if I cannot tell him how I feel. What place does a plain girl with ugly eyes have in a palace with a long line of Uchiha rulers?"

"You know that anyone is eligible to marry in to the royal family, Neji." Lee gently grasped Neji's shoulders. "I do not seek to cause you pain, sister. I only desire your happiness."

Neji paused, and then let out a gentle snort. "Lee, I understand what you're trying to say. And you know what? You're a total sap." He stood up and helped Lee stand up. "I've finished cleaning your wounds and wrapping them, but be sure and change the bandages every so often and try not to use that arm until it's fully healed."

Lee grinned cheerily. "I will be back to my youthful vigor in no time!" he vowed. "I will follow your instructions most rigorously, Neji!"

Neji smiled softly and watched Lee dance around the infirmary. Everyone else was so used to it by now that no one stared.

"Lee."

"Yes, Neji?"

"I will think about what you said. Sincerely." Neji promised him seriously.

Lee winked at him, and then ran out the door declaring his energy to be as boundless as the springtime of youth.

Neji shook his head and sighed. He could never tell Itachi how he felt; he couldn't reveal his true identity. Itachi would doubtless ship him back home to his father and the marriage.

Neji shivered, and then left the infirmary. Everyone had been treated, and he wanted to go find Itachi-he hadn't seen him come in to the infirmary, and he wanted to make sure he was alright.

XXX

Neji poked his head in to Itachi's private library. "Sir?"

Itachi was, unsurprisingly, sitting at his desk in front of the fireplace.

"Neji!" he turned around in surprise. "They told me that you were working in the infirmary."

Neji thought back on Lee's words, and chose his next statement carefully. "I…wanted to make sure that you're alright, sir."

Itachi looked surprised, and then pleased. "I have a few scratches. Nothing serious."

Neji moved forward instantly. "Are you quite sure you're alright, sir?"

Itachi hid a smirk; after working with Neji closely over the past year, he was able to interpret the younger teen's movements easily. "Yes, I'm perfectly fine. See?" Itachi pushed back his sleeves and showed Neji his relatively clean clothing.

Neji sighed in relief. "Would you like you me to draw your bath sir? You seem rather-" Neji paused while he tried to find a diplomatic word for 'dirty'.

"Grimy?" Itachi smiled and stood "No, thank you Neji. As a matter of fact, I had something else I wished to discuss with you."

Neji blinked in surprise. "You did?"

Itachi moved forward, and Neji tensed as Itachi entered his personal space. "Sir?"

"Do you recall what we were in the middle of before Kakashi interrupted?" Itachi murmured.

Neji found himself trapped when Itachi's arms settled on his waist. He shut his eyes and hid his face in Itachi's shirt.

Itachi gently coaxed his chin up.

Neji's traitorous mouth opened at the last second. "I-it wasn't fair," he stuttered.

Itachi drew back slightly and surveyed him curiously, with the slightest hint of amusement. "What wasn't fair?"

"You are constantly reminded of the fact that I can read and write. The others were less than aware of that fact. That would lead you to conclude that I come from relatively genteel breeding, and that if I lived in a secluded village in the forest, then that would be the singular possession that would allow an education as far as my own." Neji attempted to back away, but Itachi's hands held him firmly in place.

"I guessed correctly, did I not? There was no fairness to contend with Neji."

Neji started trembling, and tried to move backwards again. "I can't-" he said desperately.

Itachi stopped him again. "A kiss," he murmured. "Not marriage, not courtship-just a kiss."

Neji had never been able to deny him.

Itachi's lips brushed over his softly. Neji didn't know how long they stood there, their lips touching in a chaste kiss, but to him it felt as if the moment had lasted an eternity.

Itachi pulled back and cupped Neji's face with his hands.

"Neji , I have never meant to hurt you."

Neji shut his eyes and drew a shuddering breath. "I know," he whispered. Gently, he drew away from Itachi's kind touch and left the library.

Itachi watched him with an inscrutable expression; when he was gone, he allowed his emotionless mask to lift, and hope shone through his eyes.

Neji had let him kiss him. There was still a chance for them yet.

XXX

Itachi sighed and put his feet up on the footrest as snow fell softly outside the window. A late snowstorm in February had kept him confined the castle, but since his family would be returning soon he was running himself in to the ground planning the three day festival for their return in Kunimitsu.

Neji came in with a tea tray, but Itachi was so exhausted that he didn't hear when Neji started talking.

"Itachi? Itachi?" Neji gently waved a hand in front of his face.

Itachi jolted. "You called me by my name," he said wonderingly.

Neji surveyed him cautiously. "Did you dislike it?"

"No!" Itachi winced; that had come out a bit more robustly than he had intended. "I mean…no. No, I didn't mind at all."

Neji offered him a small smile and a cup of tea. "You seem rather tired today."

Itachi groaned and leaned back once more in to the plush cushions of the sofa. "I've been running around all day trying to plan a city-wide festival for the return of my family from their tour of the kingdom." He yawned and took a sip of hot tea. "Try and imagine planning a three day long for a huge city. I have to organize so many things."

Neji bit back the immediate response that he understood perfectly. Oddly enough, even though so much time had passed by, Neji's responses and empathy to Itachi's situation never changed. Neither had his manners, nor longing for his family.

"Ah yes, Chiyo has gone frantic with us kitchen girls running around in a panic. The festival is next week, isn't it?"

"Yes. There'll be a week of celebration and speeches and excitement, and then for the last three days there'll be bonfires and dances in the city while up here at the palace, there'll be three masked balls and banquets. Then on the third day, the queen, king, and my little brother will arrive and they'll be the guests of honor."

"It must be a large event," Neji murmured. "It's a wonder you're surviving on your own."

Itachi realized that Neji was still standing. He closed his eyes. "Come sit next to me."

He felt the weight of the sofa sag a little bit as Neji tentatively sit down beside him. Ever since their kiss two weeks ago (to the day! Yes, Itachi had been counting) Neji and Itachi had slowly started becoming more intimate around each other. They never went farther than a little bit of hand holding, cuddling, and talking but Itachi was determined. He would take as much time with Neji as he needed; he would never risk losing his beauty because he fucked up and tried to rush things.

"A ball at the palace?"

"Would you like to come with me?" Itachi asked impulsively.

He was unsurprised at Neji's gentle refusal. "No, I don't think so. I'll have kitchen and serving duty for the ball; I wouldn't be able to dance with you. Anyways, balls are for lords and ladies; I'm just a little servant girl." Neji paused. "Oh, and I wouldn't have anything to wear anyways."

Itachi chuckled. "You _would_ use your clothing as an excuse. You're right though; I wouldn't want to put you in an environment you would be uncomfortable in."

Neji laughed and leaned his head on to Itachi's shoulder. "You'll have to satisfy yourself with seeing me on serving duty, then."

Itachi didn't say anything, but he leaned down and pressed a kiss to Neji's hair.

Neji, on the other hand, thought hard. Before long, a smile tugged up at the corner of his mouth.

_Perhaps I could attend the ball…I do have clothes for the occasion and it shouldn't be difficult to obtain a mask…Although Itachi wouldn't know it was me._

Neji thought back to the three glittery squares of cloth safely hidden at the bottom of his wardrobe, as well as to the tokens that he'd brought with him from the Hyuga kingdom.

A plan began to form in his mind.

_Perfect._

**a/n**: Ho ho ho! Neji has a plan up his sleeve…I wonder what it is! *hehehe* Anyways, I hope you enjoyed, don't forget to review, and I'll see you next chapter!


	17. Chapter 16

**a/n**: Hey y'all! So…finally, the plot starts unfolding! Things start snowballing from here onwards. No warnings for this chapter (except for my horribly, absolutely impossible plans for Neji's scheme)…enjoy!

Chapter 16

Neji's heart thumped wildly in his chest in anticipation to the plan that he would put in motion tonight. Just a simple tease, meant to be mysterious-Itachi would never figure out it was him. He would leave Itachi frozen in his tracks with the truest beauty of his person.

Neji had spent a significant amount of money for his little scheme, but he didn't mind. He wouldn't mind feeling beautiful, just this one time. He'd bought very nice shampoo for his hair so that it would return to its former soft, silky state as it had been when he was princess, and he also had scented, powerful cleansing soaps that made his skin glow with health and care.

Tonight was the night of the first ball; Neji had also spent a small amount of money on three modest masks; one decorated with a sun motif, one decorated with a star motif, and one in the shape of a white swan. All three were sparkling and festooned with feathers, but rather cheap because of the materials they were made of. It hadn't taken much for Neji to adjust the quality of the masks with some glue and sewing after he'd bought them.

Right now though, Neji was seeing his friends off to the bonfire and dances. He politely declined numerous offers for people to 'escort' him to the commoner's festivities, fending them off by saying that he was tired and that he would like to rest a bit before he had kitchen duty.

Once they were all safely out of the palace courtyard, Neji dashed upstairs to his rooms in Prince Itachi's quarters. The ball had gone in to full swing about half an hour ago, and Neji knew that he could slip in fairly unnoticed.

He'd bought three special pairs of eye lenses from a glass craftsman in Kunimitsu; this way, Itachi wouldn't guess that it was him. He carefully removed his regular brown ones, and replaced them with lenses stained a brownish green color. Then, he dug deep down in to the bottom of his closet and pulled out the small pouch containing the three wedding gifts from his father.

Neji unfolded the golden dress and slipped in to it, relishing in the glossy feeling of the fine fabric against his skin. He carefully slipped the other dresses back in to the drawer before turning to the mirror. He wore his hair simply, held out of his face by two plain hair pins. He slipped the mask in place and pulled on a pair of slippers that he'd seen one of Itachi's female cousins throwing out; she had seemed like the sort of girl who threw out shoes after she had worn them once, and Neji had instantly snatched them when she turned her back. To his relief, they were in nearly-new condition; they were simple golden slippers with an embroidered motif on the toes.

Neji surveyed himself in the mirror, and beamed in delight. The golden dress, strappy and full length gave him an alluring, exotic appearance. Combined with his green-brown eyes, nice shoes and his sun mask, he was the perfect vision of mystery.

Neji slipped out of Itachi's rooms and headed toward the grand ballroom; he easily slipped inside unnoticed and was grateful that he blended in fairly well. All of the other ladies in the room also had fine dresses, nice shoes, and fantastic masks. The gentlemen were well-dressed as well; Neji scanned the room for one young man in particular.

He spotted Itachi almost instantly; of course, he had been the one who'd laid out Itachi's clothes and mask for him to wear before Itachi had left, but even his stance and gestures were easily identifiable. Itachi was wearing a phoenix mask with red and gold feathers on it along with black slacks and a red silk shirt.

Neji blinked in surprise when a young man approached him. "May I have this dance?"

Neji curtseyed in response and took the young man's hand before sweeping off in to the dance steps that had been burned in to his muscle memory since he was a young boy.

"You dance well."

"As do you," Neji lied. The other boy had stepped on his toes so many times he'd lost count.

The mysterious man chuckled. "You're too kind. I've often been told I have two left feet."

Neji wistfully wished that he'd bought a full-face mask as opposed to his own half-mask; he couldn't grimace when his partner could see his mouth. "Regardless, it was a pleasure dancing with you." He gently detached himself from the boy's arm.

"Would you care for another dance?"

Neji laughed and turned away. "Don't push your luck, lad." He started moving away when the blood froze cold in his veins.

"My name's Kiba!"

Neji barely schooled himself from flinching; Kiba's family had set a proposal in for their marriage when he was eight. His parents had declined of course, but what was Kiba doing so far away from home?

Neji mustered a flustered smile. "You may call me Sayuri."

"Sayuri?"

"Tenjoukai no Sayuri." _Lily of heaven. _Neji smirked; it was the perfect alias for his plan…at least for tonight.

"No Tenjoukai? That's not a family I've heard of."

Neji smiled kindly. "Did you think I would really give you my real name, Kiba-kun?" he left Kiba open-mouthed on the dance floor and swept off to blend once more in the crowd of finely dressed gentry.

He casually drifted towards Itachi's masked presence, occasionally dancing with other gentlemen who passed his way.

He glanced worriedly at the evening skies through the huge windows of the ballroom; if he wanted his plan to work, he was going to have to seize the next dance from Itachi or else all of his efforts would be wasted.

He gracefully intercepted a girl's path towards Itachi and smoothly slid in front of him. Itachi had been leaning against the western wall of the ballroom, moodily watching the ball from afar.

Neji's lips twitched. _Is he sullen because he couldn't dance with me? That's rather sweet_. Itachi jerked, and then stared in astonishment at Neji.

Neji curtseyed politely and extended his hand. "Would you care to dance?" he asked boldly.

Itachi immediately swept him off among the other dancers. He remembered telling his Itachi his alias, and a million other things that he couldn't quite precisely remember.

Itachi, unlike Kiba, was a very, very good dancer. He made Neji feel light on his feet, and he never stepped on his toes once.

"Your dress is very unique."

"It was a gift." Neji's mind wandered briefly as he remembered the night his father had bestowed the dresses upon him, about a year and eight months ago. It was amazing how far things had gone since then.

"Was it from someone special?"

Neji smiled wistfully. "In a way, it was." The waltz ended, and Neji dropped his hands and curtseyed deeply. "Thank you for your time…your highness." He straightened up and swept away amongst the stares of jealous girls and wondering boys.

Neji ducked behind a curtain and slipped out through the side entrance. He instantly ran for the closet he'd hidden his serving clothes and brown contacts in; he threw the uniform over his head, quickly changed his lenses and folded up the dress before sliding it down his bodice. He carefully stowed the shoes and mask under an overturned bucket before using his hairpins to secure a tidy bun.

Neji took a deep breath and smoothed down his serving uniform. Now, he had transformed back in to a plain servant. No one would see the correlation between the mysterious 'lily of heaven' and himself.

Neji's grip tightened around the golden ring his father had given him. _Now for phase two of the plan._

XXX

Neji ran in to the kitchens just in time to avoid a good scolding by Chiyo.

"You were almost late," Kushina murmured as Neji carefully wheeled out his cart of soup for the banquet.

Neji grimaced. "I ended up falling asleep after everyone else left." He felt an impending sense of déjà vu from the first time he'd had serving duty. Only, this time, he was going to be the one putting something in Itachi's soup.

Neji patiently stood behind his little cart, and shrewdly watched for Itachi's server. (After the ball, just before the banquet, everyone removed their masks.)Then, a few seconds before the server arrived at his cart, Neji dropped the golden ring in to the soup and smiled at the server, indicating that he should take the bowl.

The server complied, and Neji hid a smirk as he watched Itachi's eyes sliding over to him before smiling softly.

Itachi smiled back before turning back to a girl who was trying to get his attention. Neji's eyes narrowed when he recognized Lord Gaara's sister, Temari the princess of the sand kingdom.

Neji decided that Temari wasn't any competition; especially now since Neji was actually putting an effort in to his appearance.

He winked at Itachi before leaving with his cart. He rolled the cart back in to the kitchen before scurrying off to hide behind some curtains and watch the banquet.

His eyes narrowed in amusement when he saw the stunned surprise on Itachi's face when he found the ring at the bottom of his soup bowl.

Neji's lips twitched when he saw Kiba squawk in recognition at the sight of the ring.

The ring was golden, and had the fine likeness of a lily engraved across its circumference.

**a/n**: Mwahahahaha-Neji's lovely, just lovely. Anyways, thanks for reading, and don't forget to review…hopefully, I'll see you again next chapter :)


	18. Chapter 17

**a/n:** Sorry for the long update! Things have been so busy this week. Thank you for all your lovely reviews! (We hit the 40 review mark-woo hoo!) Anyways, this is chapter 17…the second night of the ball. No warnings, disclaimer on my profile-enjoy!

Chapter 17

Neji had recovered his gold mask, the shoes and the rest of his supplies from the small broom closet after slipping away from the main hall the previous night; he stretched out and yawned before standing on the cold stone floor of his room.

He'd ended up going to bed before Itachi the night before, and he was grateful-after hours of dancing and running in to the first social court situation he'd been in after a year, he was quite tired. He'd needed a few more hours than his normal sleeping time.

Neji pulled a dress over his head and slipped out in to the corridor. To his surprise, there was already a fire going in Itachi's sitting room even though the sun had barely risen.

"Itachi?" Neji looked down at Itachi, clearly surprised that he was up at this hour. "Did you even go to sleep last night?"

"Yes, I did. I woke up just a few minutes ago."

Neji raised an eyebrow. "It takes more than a few minutes to start a fire. I'll get some tea for you."

Itachi just leaned back in to the sofa again. When Neji left, he shook his head. It seemed as if Neji didn't know about the Uchiha legacy of fire magic.

Neji returned a several minutes later with a pot of tea and two teacups. "You really should keep your kitchen more organized. I could barely find the teapot."

"And yet you return with a hot pot of tea and two cups five minutes later," Itachi retorted. He sat up as Neji placed the tea on the table.

Neji's mouth twisted. _I cheated and used my eyes. Honestly, I'm not even sure how __**you**__ can find anything in there._

"What woke you up so early?" Neji sat down next to Itachi.

Instead of answering, Itachi took a moment to appreciate Neji's beautiful hair; he'd left it down for once, and it tumbled down his back in a cascade of brown silk. He absently rubbed a strand between his fingers. "I suppose it's too early for you to have heard any gossip about the ball last night."

"That would be correct." Neji hid his rising excitement. _He noticed me. Or, in the very least, he noticed the ring._ "Did something happen?"

"A mysterious woman appeared. She danced with many people last night, but she provided everyone with a fake name."

"Was she beautiful?" Neji allowed a hint of jealousy to creep in to his voice.

Itachi smiled and tucked a strand of hair behind his ear. "She _was_ very beautiful, love. I'm terribly sorry to tell you."

Neji laughed. "I'm hardly the most beautiful person in the world, Itachi."

Itachi surveyed him seriously. "Many would contest that claim." Neji felt a giddy blush sliding over his face before Itachi continued. "As I was saying-mysterious. She had a golden dress and a sun mask; she had brown hair like you, but she had green eyes."

"What was her name?"

"She told everyone her name was Tenjoukai no Sayuri. What a name!" Itachi chuckled. "Well, it was a masked ball. Anyways, she disappeared shortly before the banquet."

"Was that why she was so mysterious? She was dressed in gold from head to toe, but she vanished?"

"Not that. After I ate my soup, I found a golden ring at the bottom of my bowl, engraved with a lily." Itachi hesitated. "Neji-are you _quite_ sure no one slipped anything in to the soup while you were watching? No servers or strange women?" they both laughed at that.

Neji shook his head. "I'm positive. Perhaps she somehow snuck in to the kitchen before the banquet? I arrived late; she certainly would've had the chance to do it then."

Itachi nodded absently, deep in thought. "Perhaps." _A year ago…didn't Neji have a golden ring engraved with a lily in his room?_ Itachi sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He knew Neji was trustworthy, but it never hurt to be sure…he would send Neji out on an errand later some time and check. Why, though, would Neji put his ring in his soup? Itachi was utterly baffled.

"There's a second masked ball and banquet tonight, correct? Perhaps she will attend again." Neji smiled encouragingly. _Attend again? I think not, Itachi. Rather, you will find her cousin, dressed as the Goddess of the Stars tonight._

"Hm. Perhaps I could figure out who she really is tonight."

Neji smiled inwardly; Itachi was reacting exactly the way he'd expected. So far, everything was running smoothly. After this, there would be no trace of any of the three heavenly beings who would grace Kunimitsu City for the three balls.

XXX

Itachi waited for Neji to head off on an errand in the market for him; normally, he didn't send Neji outside during the punishing winter conditions of Kunimitsu, but today was an exception.

After Tayuya's betrayal a year ago, Itachi was still wary. He headed down the corridor to the small little room where Neji slept and kept his belongings.

He carefully sifted through Neji's belongings before placing everything back in their exact positions before moving on to the wardrobe.

He dug down to the bottom, when his hand brushed across a soft, leather pouch. Itachi pulled it out and opened it with interest.

Itachi stared, and then slowly pulled the items out of the bag with trembling hands. In the soft material, several sets of brown contact lenses glimmered innocently at him.

Not so innocent was the pair of greenish-brown tinted lenses; this pair was tinted the exact same shade as Sayuri's eyes last night.

XXX

Neji shivered and pulled his thousand-fur cloak around himself tighter in an attempt to buffer the cutting winds that battered him from all sides. Itachi had requested that he run by the bookstore to pick up a special copy of a certain textbook for him, but when Neji had reached the shop, the door had been locked and the lights were off.

Neji sighed in relief when he reached the safety of the courtyard; the shop was twenty minutes away, and Neji was frozen stiff from having been out in the cold so long.

Kushina spotted him shivering near the kitchen fire and brought him a bowl of stew. "That's some cloak you've got there, Neji." She raised an eyebrow at the different textures and colors of fur that adorned his cloak.

"Got it in a rubbish shop. They said it was too ugly to sell," Neji gratefully warmed his hands on the side of the bowl. "You won't believe it Kushina; the one time Itachi sends me out in winter, the shop was closed!"

Kushina blinked. "But of course the shop was closed. On festival days, there's no business until afternoon."

Neji blinked. "R-really? But he seemed so sure…well, he was rather preoccupied." Neji shrugged and turned back to his stew.

Kushina smiled and turned away, but not before worry flashed through her eyes.

Every Kunimitsu citizen knew that law, and Itachi had lived here his whole life. What was he trying to hide from Neji?

XXX

That night, Neji went through the same steps of the plan as the previous night; only, this time he told his friends that he would try and find them during the festival. His excuse later would be that he had wandered around for a while, hadn't seen them and then had headed back inside.

When they were gone, Neji ran up to his room and pulled on the gauzy, knee-length silver dress, his moon mask, and a pair of green-flecked blue contacts. Tonight, his friends had left earlier leaving Neji with some time to play with his hair. In the end, he twisted part of it in to a small bun on the back of his head, and the rest of it hung down his bare shoulders. Neji shivered slightly and longed for a shawl that would cover him at the ball; unfortunately he would have to cope with the cold. He could probably stay warm by dancing with more people.

Finally, Neji uncovered a pair of silver high heels from his brown leather satchel hanging on the inside of the closet. He had taken these from another one of Itachi's cousins; they were a bit too glittery for Neji's taste, but they would have to do. He pulled the shoes on his feet, secured his masks and contacts and then raced downstairs before slipping in to the ball.

To his surprise, Itachi was hovering by the door seemingly waiting for the mysterious "lily of heaven" to show up. When Neji slipped in, he saw Itachi's shoulders sag slightly before he approached him.

Neji admired Itachi's appearance; today, Itachi was dressed in a sleek suit that hugged all of the right places on his slim body. He had the mask of a silver dragon.

"Would you care to dance?" Itachi asked him.

Neji stared in surprise. He hadn't planned on approaching Itachi until much later in the ball. He quickly recovered his wits and curtseyed. "I would be honored." Itachi swept him off his feet in to a waltz.

"Your dress is very unique," Itachi complimented him. "It glimmers subtly, and yet it manages to catch the eye so well."

Neji smiled back at him. "Thank you. It was a gift."

Itachi's pulse quickened. _Could this be the Lily of Heaven in disguise again?_ "…Was it from someone special?"

Neji paused and remembered his father again. Truly, his father was a good man-but his intentions were too terrible for Neji. "I suppose you could say that."

Itachi decided to go for the straightforward approach. "Are you the Lily of Heaven from last night?"

Neji let out a small laugh. "Who, me? Certainly not; I'm hardly as beautiful as she is. My cousin came to the ball last night and told me that she had given herself the name 'Lily of Heaven'. It seemed rather gaudy to me, don't you think?"

"Your cousin?" Itachi asked in disbelief. _You've got to be kidding me. Who the hell was that woman?_ _How the heck did she manage to get in unnoticed? _"What is your cousin's true name?"

"I can't tell you. When I told her I was coming tonight, she made me promise not to tell. My cousin does appreciate a dramatic first impression."

Itachi gently drew both of them away from the dance and lead Neji to the refreshment table on the side. "Would you like some lemonade?"

"Oh, please." Neji discretely smoothed the front of his dress down. It appeared as if Itachi wanted to occupy his attention tonight-he would have to keep his guard up.

Itachi returned a few moments later with a glass of chilled, lemony drink. He handed it to Neji and led them to a quiet alcove.

"You said your cousin prefers a dramatic first impression?"

"Quite so," Neji nodded serenely as he sipped his lemonade. "She's certainly one for theatrics. Doubtless, she left you a mystery you couldn't solve. She does so enjoy toying with men's hearts."

Itachi deflated a little bit at that. "Hm. I wouldn't have minded finding out who she was," he admitted.

Neji sighed sympathetically. "You're out of luck-she left the city last night with her fiancé. You'll most likely never meet her again-her fiancé lives very far up north." _Wow. Either my impression of 'Lily of Heaven' was too much for Itachi last night, or he's a very, very good actor._

"What business did she have in Kunimitsu city, then?"

"She just finished her studies at the university."

Itachi seemed satisfied with his explanation, and Neji decided to change the subject. "You know, you've swept me off my feet for _several_ dances, and you have yet to provide me with a name for yourself."

"Prince Itachi," he said without preamble. Neji barely held back a snort. Instead, he rose to his feet with flustered grace and curtseyed.

"Your highness," she murmured. She quickly set her glass down on the little table before backing away. "I-I couldn't possibly hold your attention all night, I'm afraid. It would be nice to give the other girls a chance, don't you think?" She giggled nervously before fleeing back on to the dance floor before Itachi could protest.

Itachi watched the mysterious silver girl leave in frustration. She'd seemed nice enough, and she would've been nice company considering that Neji wasn't able to attend the ball with him. Of course, the minute he opened his stupid mouth, the girl got scared and ran off.

Itachi grimaced, and then exited the alcove with a self-suffering sigh as a girl with red hair and an annoyingly high voice simpered at him from the side.

He was in for a long, long night.

**a/n**: Aw…poor Itachi, he scared Neji away and now he'll be bored for the rest of the ball. Anyways…oh yeah, about the magical eyes thing: That really only comes up in this chapter. It never comes up ever again in the remaining five-ish chapters, so its just sort of a little anecdote that I stuck in there. Thank you for reading, don't forget to review, and I'll see you next chapter!


	19. Chapter 18

**a/n: **Hey everybody! This is a quick update, so I won't rant...disclaimer on my profile, no warnings. This is Chapter 18...in which it all comes to an end. Enjoy!

Chapter 18

Neji yawned and stretched in bed the following morning; his lips quirked up in a lazy smile as he remembered Itachi's stunned reaction from the previous night when he received the silver thimble. Neji been on serving duty for the seafood dishes last night; it had been easy to drop the thimble in to a dish with salmon and cream before handing it off to Itachi's unsuspecting server. This time, Neji had still been remaining in the room when Itachi had discovered the thimble, and he had enjoyed Itachi's wide-eyed surprise.

Itachi would probably question Neji again today, but Neji knew he had a clean record. Itachi would never be able to guess that it was him.

To Neji's surprise though, Itachi didn't question him in the morning. Instead, he sat and sighed in front of the fire place while fingering Neji's silver thimble.

Neji was sad to see his ring and his thimble leave his possession, but if it were for Itachi's sake it was fine. He knew that Itachi would take good care of them.

XXX

Itachi sat in front of the fireplace and listened to the soft sounds of Neji singing in another room.

Who could these mysterious women be? He hadn't been able to glean a name off of the silver girl last night, but he knew that they were related. When he had found the silver thimble gleaming on his plate at the feast last night, he knew it had been a gift from her.

A silver thimble, a golden ring…

Itachi's grin broadened. If he was right, another girl would be coming to the ball tonight. He could only wonder what she would be like, and if she would give a gift to him.

Itachi was almost certain that both of those girls were Neji; when he'd found Neji's contact lenses he'd found a pair of green flecked blue, and greenish-brown lenses. However, he couldn't be sure until he found something else…

Itachi decided he didn't want to take a chance. Suppose the three girls were really part of an elaborate plan to take down the visiting dignitaries that would be returning with his parents? Not only would it be the perfect place to plan an assassination of the entire royal family, but the Hyuga kingdom wasn't very popular among the citizens. The king of the Hyuga and his heirs would be coming to Kunimitsu city along with his parents tonight; it had the potential for _someone_ to try and do something stupid.

He would search Neji's belongings one final time just to make sure that it wasn't Neji. If it truly wasn't him, then Itachi would simply have to tighten up security for the ball.

He got up and went in to his study to find Neji carefully reorganizing the papers on his desk.

"Neji?"

Neji looked up at him and blinked in surprise. "Yes, Itachi?"

Itachi smiled; he couldn't help it. Every time Neji said his name, he smiled because it just felt so _right. _It felt perfect to have Neji addressing him on a personal level. "Would you mind running downstairs and delivering this list of dishes to Chiyo for me?"

Neji blinked in surprise as Itachi seemingly drew up a piece of paper from thin air and handed it to him. "But…Chiyo can't read."

"Yes, that's why I need you to run down and read it for her. There are some important people tonight, and it would be nice for Chiyo to dress her dishes up even more," Itachi winked at Neji. "I know I wouldn't normally send you on an errand like this, but it's rather urgent that you do it now."

Neji set down the papers he was holding and accepted the list from Itachi. "Ok. I'll take it down to her right away."

Itachi nodded, and watched Neji leave the room. He waited until he heard Neji leave the sitting room before he headed in to Neji's little room near the back of his apartments.

He'd practically torn the room to pieces the last time he checked; where else could Neji hide something? Itachi opened the closet door, and his eyes fell on Neji's brown satchel.

He pulled it out, and opened it up. He curiously picked up a piece of glimmering silver cloth, only for it to fall open in his hands.

Itachi stared. The tiny square of silver had opened up and turned in to the dress that the silver girl with the moon mask had been wearing last night. Itachi folded the dress back up in to a square, and dug around in the satchel. He found a golden square of cloth that had unfolded in to the golden dress the 'Lily of Heaven' had worn to the ball. He also found a sun mask and another silver mask.

Itachi hurriedly closed the satchel and returned everything to its proper place before leaving the room. Either Neji was helping the women, or both women had been Neji himself.

Either way, it didn't matter-Itachi had no need to increase security on the ball tonight. He wandered in to his room, fell down on the bed and began to formulate a plan to prove the identity of the mysterious cousins.

Itachi smirked slowly as he fingered the golden ring; if he planned everything just right, he just might have the answer to his little mystery.

XXX

Neji fidgeted impatiently; he'd made excuses to his friends saying he'd meet them later and try and find them again but they _still weren't leaving._ When they were finally gone, Neji sped upstairs to put on the moon-dress.

He loved the moon-dress the best of the three gifts his father had given him; it always made feel elegant, beautiful and graceful. He pulled the dress over his head and put in a pair of stormy grey contacts. He slipped the swan mask over his face before releasing the heavy braid he'd had all day-to his satisfaction, his hair fell down in thick, dark curls around his face. He pulled on the final pair of salvaged shoes-white slippers with glittery embroidery-before, after a moment of hesitation, he slipped his mother's diamond earrings on.

He surveyed himself in the mirror, and he instantly knew that he would be the star of the ball tonight. No one's outfit would even begin to match the dazzling beauty of the dramatic combination of his dark hair, pale skin, pale eyes and shining dress.

Neji raced down the stairs for the final time before slipping in through the side entrance. He scanned the crowds for Itachi; he knew that tonight, Itachi would have a griffin mask, but he couldn't see him anywhere!

It only took two minutes for boys, gentlemen, and older men alike to start lining up for a dance with him. Neji danced with some and gently refused others even as his frustration built. _Where is Itachi?_

Neji's heart fell as the strains for the final song drifted through the air-after this, he would have run back to the kitchens for serving duty again and he wouldn't be able to share a dance with Itachi. Sighing, he turned away from the dance floor, only to gasp in shock when he saw Itachi standing directly in front of him.

"Would you care to dance?" Itachi extended a hand, and Neji didn't hesitate to take it.

Neji decided that so far, this night had been the best of all nights so far, even though Itachi had kept him waiting…although Itachi couldn't possibly have known that.

Meanwhile, Itachi slyly slipped a diamond ring on to Neji's finger without him noticing; if it was Neji, he would most likely still have it on during servant duty. He easily distracted the swan princess from the movement while he intently examined her face. Now, the second phase of plan was being put in to action.

Neji began to worry behind his swan mask. The dance was going unusually long, and unless he left soon he would be late for serving duty.

"Is something wrong, my lady?" Itachi inquired innocently.

Neji quickly masked the anxiety in his eyes. "Nothing is wrong. How could anything be wrong while I am partnered with such a skilled dancer?" Neji teased.

Itachi laughed and made a witty response as they continued twirling merrily to the music.

Finally, the song ended and Neji curtseyed deeply. "Thank you for the dance," he murmured.

"It was my pleasure…Swan Princess," Itachi smirked at him.

Neji smiled sweetly before vanishing back in to the crowd. He slipped away through the servant's entrance and ducked in to a broom closet. He hastily exchanged his contacts, but to his abject horror realized that he was already late for serving duty. Panicked, he made a hasty decision and threw the thousand fur cloak over himself-it covered his entire body down to his shoes, meaning no one would see his dress. He ripped the diamond earrings from his ears and ran madly for the hall.

Kushina stared at him in amazement as he darted in to his position next to her. "Neji, what are you _wearing_?"

"It's so cold," Neji murmured back. "I couldn't leave without it."

Kushina observed him worriedly. "Well, you are rather flushed-perhaps you have a fever."

Neji muttered something incoherent and turned his eyes forward. He quickly dropped the diamond earrings in to Itachi's bowl of soup before passing it on to the unsuspecting server, and waited for Itachi's reaction.

Neji's eyes narrowed, and then widened in shock when he saw that Itachi wasn't at his normal seat at the banquet table.

Neji turned around swiftly and faced Itachi who had been standing behind him the entire time.

"Sir!" Neji gasped in surprise. "Oh goodness, you startled me!"

"Neji, give me your hand."

"Sir?" Neji tilted his head in confusion.

Itachi's heart beat sped up; this here would be the moment of truth. He could feel something nagging in his brain, telling him that there was another important part to the puzzle, but for now he ignored it. "Your hand, Neji."

Neji stretched out his hands in confusion; the cloak covered the elegant sleeves of the dress without revealing anything. "Sir, I don't understand-"

Neji's breath caught in his throat when he saw the glittering diamond ring on his finger. He instantly withdrew his hands as the blood drained from his face. _I never even noticed that he put it on my finger. How…?_

Itachi reached out to stop Neji's hand from retracting, but instead his hand caught on Neji's sleeve.

Neji watched the entire scene almost as if he were watching the scene from outside his body: he saw himself take a step back as Itachi's hand caught on his sleeve, saw the cloak slip down from around his shoulders, saw Itachi's eyes widen in triumph as his glittering neckline was revealed-

"I knew it was you," Itachi smiled. Finally! The mystery was solved-

Or was it? Itachi had never been one to ignore his instincts, and his brain was yelling that there was something else he was missing.

_A dress that shines like the sun, a dress that glimmers like the stars, and a dress like moonlight...A cloak of a thousand furs…_

Suddenly, Itachi understood. Neji stared at him in confusion when Itachi swept in to a low bow.

Itachi straightened up and stared at him directly, feeling a surge of pity at the sudden wave of panic and terror in Neji's eyes.

Hiashi Hyuga stood behind Itachi, staring at his daughter whom he had thought lost to him forever. Even though Neji was hiding his eyes, his stance and stature were unmistakable.

Not to mention his attire, of course.

King Hiashi bowed low to the servant girl in the strange cloak.

"My princess…Princess Neji."

**a/n**: Sort of cliff-hanger, sorry! Yes, Neji gets found out...(don't worry, this isn't the end of the story lol.) Will Neji be able to escape? What will happen to him? Stick around and find out next chapter :) Thanks for reading, and don't forget to review! (Oh yeah-and Neji always knows who Itachi is because he sets out his costume for him every night, so he knows what to look for. I'm sorry if that's a bit confusing.)


	20. Chapter 19

**a/n**: Thank you for all your lovely reviews! We're quite near the end of the story…we only have about two chapters left. Now…on to chapter 19: In which Neji tries to escape. (Disclaimer on my profile, no warnings…enjoy!)

Chapter 19

Neji bolted. The moment he'd seen his father, he'd frozen in panic and terror, but the words had acted as a trigger to his panic crazed mind.

Neji sprinted for his room-he had an emergency pack with food and clothing in case he needed to leave on short notice. How grateful he was for it now!

Neji's mind whirled as he sprinted through the palace. _What is my father doing here? The Uchiha Kingdom still abhors the Hyuga kingdom-did he come looking for me? How did Itachi figure out it was me? What will I do now?_

Neji skidded in to Itachi' apartments and ran for his room. He threw himself inside and slammed the door shut; he opened the closet door, grabbed his pack and started pulling the glass window open. Directly outside was a large tree-he could climb down and escape in to the city.

Neji cursed as the catch on the window caught. He tugged hard on it, panicking for the millionth time that night as someone pounded on his door.

In a fit of desperation, he shattered the glass pane and was about to leap through the empty window when the door caved in.

Neji only paused for a second, but it was enough: Itachi crossed the room, seized Neji around the waist and threw him on to the bed.

Neji was on his feet again and running for the window again, but this time Itachi trapped him in a hard embrace.

"Itachi, let go! You don't understand-"

"No, Neji, _you _don't understand. Do you have any idea of what's going on?"

"My father is here," Neji snarled, desperately trying to land a blow on Itachi. "I have to get away. Please, Itachi, please don't do this-"

"You have no idea what happened after you left do you?" Itachi asked wonderingly. "You really have no idea?"

Neji gave up trying to fight Itachi, and focused on holding his tears back instead. He had been a fool to trust Itachi-Itachi was only holding him here so that he could send him back home with his father.

"You," he choked out. "I _trusted_ you. Why are you doing this?"

Itachi sighed, but didn't lessen his hold. "Neji, I promise that if you hear me out, you'll understand everything. Will you promise not to try and escape?"

"Yes," Neji said instantly.

Itachi released him, and Neji headed for the window again. Of course, Itachi had been expecting it-this time, he knocked Neji down so that he was sitting on top of him while Neji lay on the floor.

Neji rolled over and tried to kick him off to no avail. Itachi had him pinned.

"Listen to me, Neji. There's nothing to be afraid of. Please, just listen."

Neji hid his face in his hair. "As if I had a choice!" A solitary tear slipped down his cheek. It had all been for nothing-running away for a year, all of the strife and terror, nearly dying in the forest, struggling to fit in to his new environment; all of his blood, sweat and tears to be reduced to ashes because he'd been foolish enough to trust Itachi.

"Neji…you are no longer engaged to King Hiashi of the Hyuga kingdom."

Neji went absolutely still underneath him. Encouraged that Neji was listening, Itachi continued on. "A lot of things happened after you left. Your father tore the kingdom apart looking for you, and then he turned on the surrounding kingdoms and began looking for you there. He'd even been looking for you in this kingdom while he joined my parents and my little brother on their tour of the land-in a letter from Sasuke, he said that your father had finally given up hope only a few weeks ago. Anyways, about five months after you left, Hinata and Akimichi Chouji broke of their engagement. Shikamaru Nara and Hinata got engaged and married, and Hiashi has already named them as the heirs to the Hyuga throne."

Neji stared up at Itachi in shock, completely forgetting to hide his face. Could it be true? Could he no longer have an obligation to marry his father? "Wh-what are you saying? Hinata is hardly fit to lead the kingdom in her state-"

"Many things have changed while you were gone," Itachi said. "Neji, there is nothing to be afraid of anymore."

Neji stared up at him. "Itachi, there is still so much to be afraid of. Please, please don't hold me here. You can't understand how terrifying it was."

"You aren't obligated to accept his advances, Neji. Now, you can put a definite stop to them. You and your father can start over again on a blank slate. Don't you see the possibilities Neji? I can't…I can't let you go. Not when I finally have you in my grasp."

Neji stared at him uncomprehendingly. "I…" _What do you mean, 'you finally have me'?_

Itachi glanced over his shoulder hurriedly. "Neji, just promise you won't run. Sincerely."

Neji stared at him, hesitating. "I…" _Not engaged to my father. Could this be true?_ "Yes. I won't run. I swear it."

Itachi sighed in relief, and then got off of him. He leaned down and helped Neji off the ground.

At that moment, Hiashi Hyuga came thundering in through the door. "Neji!" he instantly moved forward and took his daughter in to his arms. "Oh gods, Neji."

Neji jerked backwards violently.

Itachi decided to take the ensuing awkward silence as his cue to leave.

Hiashi gazed at Neji, hurt obvious in his eyes. "Neji…"

Neji backed away hastily. "I don't want to see you right now," he choked out. "I don't-"

"I did not mean to startle you." Hiashi slowly raised his hands and took a step backwards. "I simply meant to say that I'm so glad you're alright, Neji."

Neji stared at him. "Y-you're…glad?"

"You are my precious daughter. Of course I'm glad!"

Neji looked shocked. "But I thought…All I do is hurt you. Why do you persist in your feelings for me?"

Hiashi moved forward cautiously. "Where did you come up with that crazy idea? Neji, you rarely ever hurt me."

"Don't tell me that my escape from the palace didn't hurt you," Neji said vehemently. "You must've felt betrayed."

Hiashi sighed heavily. "Of course I felt betrayed, Neji. You had, for all appearances, accepted my suit, but then you left the night before our wedding. However," he cut Neji off with a warning glance, "After you left, I thought about your actions. You are not an impulsive creature-everything you do has millennia of planning beforehand. I understood why you ran, and thus I felt ashamed of myself. You are my precious daughter, and yet I was forcing my wishes and desires on you. I do not blame you for fleeing."

Neji's eyes were bright with unshed tears. "Hiashi…"

"I forgive you, Neji. It's ok. Don't cry," Hiashi soothed as he pulled Neji in to an embrace.

"You're still angry with me, aren't you?"

"I'm not angry with you." Hiashi took him by the shoulders. "However, I am…upset. You realize that in revealing yourself to me, you have in essence returned to the Hyuga family?"

Neji swallowed hard. "I had no idea you would be here tonight. I never even expected Itachi to figure out who I was."

"You give him too little credit. He's the head of his father's war council; even Shikamaru's genius can't touch him. Anyhow, once again you fall under my jurisdiction Neji. You will house yourself with the rest of the Hyuga delegation; I will have a strict guard put over your apartments at all times. Of course, many things have changed while you were gone…but I think I have the perfect solution to our problem."

"What?" Neji felt an odd flicker of panic. "What problem? What is your solution?"

"We'll talk more in the morning," Hiashi dismissed his panic. Neji wasn't stupid; he knew his father was upset, and that Hiashi was punishing him by leaving him hanging. "You may stay in this room for the night, but tomorrow you will stay with the Hyuga delegation. I'll send a servant up for you tomorrow morning."

"Father-"

"Good night, Neji." Hiashi left the room and closed the door behind him before leaning against it with his eyes shut.

Gods, he was angry. He was angry with himself, he was angry with his family, he was angry with the council, he was angry with Neji: he was just angry with the world. He shouldn't have left Neji hanging like that, and he shouldn't have lied about the way he felt to Neji, but there wasn't any other choice. Hiashi understood that if he wanted Neji back, he was going to have to lie about his true feelings for his daughter. Neji had run away from their marriage a year ago, and judging from Neji's reaction a few minutes ago Neji still wouldn't accept Hiashi's love for him.

Hiashi pushed off the door and left Prince Itachi's apartments, not even bothering to acknowledge the younger man. When he had named Hinata and Shikamaru as the heirs to the Hyuga throne, he had thought that Neji was gone for good. However, now that Neji was back…things could actually work out in their favor.

Hiashi winced. What was he doing? He had finally found his daughter, only to give her away again barely a few days later? Gods knew what Neji would think. Or what Hinata and Shikamaru would think of it all.

Hiashi shook his head and hurried off for bed. It was late, and he was too emotional to think clearly. Tomorrow, he could formulate a plan with Shikamaru.

However, just before he went to bed he ordered a guard to stand watch over Neji's bedroom door. There was no way that he would let Neji run away again; not when he finally had him back in his arms.

**a/n**: So…that's chapter 19! Despite it being quite short, it was still pretty dramatic. And yes, Hiashi and Itachi have parallel views of Neji…because they're both in love with him ahahaha. Anyways, don't forget to review and thanks for reading!


	21. Chapter 20

**a/n**: Hey everyone! Thanks for the lovely reviews! *huggles* Anyways…this is chapter 20, in which everyone gets reunited. Sorry for any mistakes in grammar or spelling (I haven't had too much time to edit) and if you spot any plot holes PLEASE TELL ME! I hate having loose ends Anyways, onwards to chapter 20! (No warnings, disclaimer on my profile…enjoy!)

Chapter 20

Neji frantically rummaged in his closet for suitable clothing the next morning. None of his normal peasant clothing was fancy enough to go reunite with his family, and he most certainly wouldn't be wearing any of Hiashi's wedding gifts for a long while.

Finally, Neji found the dress he'd been looking for: it was low cut lavender with elbow-length sleeves and a white sash. Unfortunately, he didn't have any shoes to wear, but the dress would do. He threw it over his head, brushed out his hair and threw the door open.

Neji flinched at the sight of a tall guard in a hooded cloak standing on the other side of the door. "Um…can I help you?"

"Orders of King Hiashi." The guard leaned back against the doorjamb. "I was supposed to stand guard over your room last night."

Neji's shoulders drooped. "I see," he said quietly. "Has my father sent a summons for me yet?"

The guard pushed his hood back, and Neji nearly cried out when he saw Shusuke's impassive face staring down at him. "No, not yet."

"Shu-nii…" Neji swallowed hard. He hadn't expected to be met with such indifference. "You've gotten taller over the last couple of years."

"Hn."

Neji fiddled with the sleeves of his dress. "So…you got promoted?"

"A lot of things changed while you were gone."

Neji's face fell, and he bit back tears. "I…I can see that," he choked out. He turned and fled back in to the room. He furiously scrubbed the tears from his eyes and took a deep breath in an attempt to calm himself. He had nothing to apologize for. He had run away because the marriage was wrong.

If that was true though, then why did he feel so ashamed?

Neji was drawn from his thoughts by a sharp rap on the door. He got up quickly and opened it, and then nearly fainted when he saw Ino standing behind Shusuke.

"Your summons, Princess."

Neji's mouth thinned and his shoulders fell as he quietly scurried past Shusuke to Ino's side before following her out of Itachi's apartments.

Unsurprisingly, Neji found Itachi in his sitting room, seated on the plush couch in front of the fire. Ino bowed low, and Neji followed suit, unable to look Itachi in the eye. He knew it would most likely be the last time he saw him before Hiashi locked him up in a room and then parceled him back off to the Hyuga kingdom, but Neji couldn't help it. He felt horrible about lying to Itachi about his true identity.

"Neji."

Neji jerked in surprise when Itachi addressed him by name. "Yes?"

"I don't hold it against you. Lying, that is."

Neji stared at Itachi in surprise, and then in happiness. Well, at least one person was on his side. "Thank you," he said gratefully.

Ino gently tugged on his sleeve. "We have to go now, Neji. Prince Itachi," she nodded in his direction. Neji quickly followed after her in silence.

However, once they were in the corridor, Ino launched herself on to Neji and smothered him in a fierce hug. "Oh gods, how I missed you!" Ino sobbed in to Neji's shoulder. "I was so scared-I thought you'd died or something horrible happened. I thought you would be so angry with me if you ever returned-"

"Why would I be angry with you?" Neji gently wiped the tears off of Ino's face and hugged her back. "I can never be angry with you for long."

"I don't know," Ino sobbed. "I just-you aren't angry, are you?"

"Of course not! Of all things, I expected you to be angry with me!" Neji exclaimed. He pulled Ino in to another hug.

"I'm not angry with you," Ino sniffled. "I got it after a while. I was just sad that…well, I failed you, didn't I? I know you tried to tell me so many times that you didn't want to marry King Hiashi, but I just didn't listen."

"You never failed me," Neji said fervently. "You always made me smile during that time. I'm not mad at you. I could never ever stay mad at you for long."

Ino sighed, and gave him a teary smile. "I'm glad." Sniffling, she wiped her nose with a handkerchief before standing up straighter and beginning to walk away. "Do you know why King Hiashi called you?"

"Father said that my return had caused some problems, but that he has the perfect solution." Neji shivered slightly; the dress exposed his shoulders, and he'd forgotten to grab a cloak. "I don't know what that means though."

Ino looked over at him. "I think I know what he's talking about." She took Neji's small hand inside her own and squeezed it tightly. "I think you'll like the solution though. When I saw you last night, it was painfully obvious that-" she cut herself off. "Well, if you don't know than I can't tell you. However, I think that things will start looking up for you."

Neji licked his lips nervously, and squeezed back. "Wherever we're going, I hope there's a fire," he muttered.

Ino looked at him in surprise, and then noticed that he didn't have a cloak. "Goodness, Neji! You've gotten prettier since the last time I saw you! Although, you do realize that that dress is made for summer, right?"

"It's the nicest thing I have right now," Neji explained. "And is it even possible for me to get any prettier?"

Ino nodded seriously. "Of course it is. Couldn't you see-" Ino stopped puzzled, and then shook her head. Maybe it had been her imagination. "Well, King Hiashi certainly seemed to think so."

"Did he really?" Neji's heartbeat quickened slightly; did his father still intend to marry him? "I…I was just so panicked last night, I really didn't notice."

"Hm. Well, everyone is glad to see you."

"I wouldn't say that," Neji murmured sadly. "Shu-nii is so terribly angry with me right now."

"Well, you know Shusuke best. I think that once you give him some time, he will forgive you. He was extremely upset when you ran off without telling anyone; he thought that well…he thought that you would have trusted him enough to say something. Just give him time Neji." Ino stopped in front of a stone door and knocked once. "Everyone's waiting for you. Just keep your chin up, no matter what happens."

Neji nodded nervously; who had Hiashi chosen for the delegation? Would they be angry with him as well? How would they react?

The door flew open, and Neji fell over when Hinata launched herself at him.

"Ugh-Hinata-"

"Neji-nii-san!" Hinata beamed down at him. "I-I missed you so much!"

Neji smiled softly; it appeared that with time, Hinata's stutter had virtually vanished. "I'm very happy to see you too, Hinata."

Hinata helped him to his feet, and Neji dusted off his skirt. Ino placed a supportive hand on the small of his back, and together, the trio entered the room.

The room erupted in to a cacophony of shouting and applause. Following Ino's advice, Neji kept his chin up and tried not to flinch away.

Suddenly, Neji found himself separated from Ino and Hinata as a crowd of nobles from the Hyuga kingdom descended on him; one moment Shikamaru was clapping him on the back, next Chouji had lifted him off his feet and twirled him in a circle and even Lord Tokuma was standing there smiling, shaking his head and offering a hand to steady Neji as people all around him jostled each other to put in words of happiness, loss, encouragement and greeting.

Finally, the room settled out and people returned to their seats. Neji bowed low to his father; in response, Hiashi swept him up in to a strong hug that told Neji that Hiashi truly shared no harsh feelings about his running away.

Finally, Hiashi released him and Neji smiled quietly. Surely, Ino had been wrong-he had felt nothing but paternal love and care in the hug.

Neji sat down at his accustomed seat on his father's right and attentively listened as his father began to relate all of the events that had gone down recently and orders of business. After the affairs of the delegation had been resolved, Neji mingled with the others and wallowed in the renewed sense of family surrounding him.

However, his happiness was short lived. "Neji, I would like to speak to you alone." Hiashi cut through the crowd to stand before Neji.

Neji obediently followed. He raised an eyebrow when Hiashi closed the door behind him and leaned against it. His face was weary and grey.

"What is it, father?" Neji cast his eyes around the room, and pulled out a chair from beside a small table. "Sit down. You look like you're about to faint."

Hiashi grimaced, but accepted the proffered seat. "It would seem that your time spent as a servant had an effect on you."

"I was always timid before." Neji frowned.

"You were much more commanding before." Hiashi settled back and steepled his fingers. "Anyways, I'm not saying it's a bad thing. It's just…you've changed. If anything, you've become even more beautiful."

Neji hid his shaking hands. Had Ino been right? "Hardly. I rarely take special pains for my appearance now. I'm not beautiful."

Hiashi's lips quirked upwards. "Many would contest that fact."

Neji's stomach dropped through the ground; Itachi had said the exact same thing to him earlier. What was going on? "Father…"

Hiashi shook himself. "Actually, that wasn't what I wanted to speak to you about."

"Then what did you wish to discuss with me?"

"You…" Hiashi paused, and then started over again. "I told you yesterday that your return had caused a minor problem, but that I had a solution."

Neji nodded cautiously.

"Well, I spoke with Shikamaru this morning, and he agreed with me. You see, the problem is that I have already named Shikamaru and Hinata as the heirs to the throne. Now, you have no power or position in the palace. However, even though you have been absent from the court for the past two years, you are still one of my most valuable assets and diplomats. I need you to continue working for me, but as a princess with no claim to the throne, you will lose all of the power you once had in the court. The country would continue to love you, but you would simply become a patriotic figurehead."

"I see," Neji said frowning. He had been aware that he would lose authority when Hinata and Shikamaru took the throne, but he hadn't been aware as to the entirety of his loss.

"So, Shikamaru and I have come up with a solution to the problem. Yes, it is somewhat drastic, but I believe it is…necessary."

"Father-" Neji started forward in fear.

"Let me finish, Neji." Hiashi's voice took on a steely tone. "Tomorrow, I will offer your hand in marriage to prince Itachi of the Uchiha kingdom. You will continue to retain even more influence than you had before, and you can work to smooth relations over between the Uchiha and Hyuga."

Neji stared in shock. Finally, he mustered his voice in a tiny squeak. "A-are you sending me away?"

"No, I'm not sending you away, Neji. However, this has to be done." Hiashi's expression softened. "I knew you would take it this way, blaming yourself when you did nothing wrong. Neji, I am not angry with you. If I had my way, I would keep you back at home with the rest of our family. However, this problem has been going on for a very long time and you are the perfect solution."

Neji's lips compressed. "I-I understand." It was almost as if everything was happening outside his body again, like the previous night-he heard himself say the words, he saw his lips move, but his mind simply could not comprehend.

"Good." Hiashi paused, and then stood up. "Go on-I'm sure that your friends are waiting for you now."

"Yes." Neji paused just as he was about to exit the room. "Does-does Hinata know?"

"No, she doesn't. No one else is aware that this will happen besides Shikamaru and myself."

"I see." Neji shakily turned the doorknob and fled away from the room. He kept up a cheerful front while Ino and Hinata chattered in to his ears and led him off somewhere, but inside his mind was whirling.

Neji was drawn from his thoughts by Hinata's hand tugging on his sleeve. "Neji, you can just borrow clothes from Ino and me. We're all the same size. And you'll be sharing a room with me too."

Ino beamed at him from his left and nodded before starting to chatter about shoes.

Neji banished all thoughts of Itachi and allowed a small smile to rest on his lips as he tugged his two best friends closer. As long as he had his family, everything would be alright no matter what.

**a/n: **Aw…and now everyone is back together Thanks for reading, don't forget to review, and I'll see you next chapter!


	22. Chapter 21

**a/n**: Hey everyone! Thank you for the lovely reviews! Anyways, after this we have two chapters left to the end…this chapter is very fluffy, so prepare for your teeth to rot out! Anyways, no warnings, disclaimer on my profile…enjoy!

Chapter 21

Neji swallowed nervously; he'd spoken with Shikamaru about the proposal the previous night and Shikamaru had done his best to reassure him and console him, but it hadn't done too much. According to Shikamaru, he wouldn't have to be present when the actual proposal was being made, but apparently after that there would be a lot of awkward dinners, dances, and interrogations from Itachi's family.

Neji sighed and kicked his shoe-clad feet against the ground. Right now, he was sitting in Hinata's bedroom, staring as rain pounded on the castle window. Hinata had left to go spend time with Shikamaru, but had offered him her collection of books that she'd brought with her. Neji couldn't be bothered to read though-there were too many things to think about.

He wondered what the gang would think of him now; most of the palace was unaware as to his true identity because he'd been whisked off right after the ball, but Neji also knew that many members of the gang abhorred the Hyuga. Neji shuddered at the thought; he was almost certain that he wouldn't be welcome anymore in Konoha.

Neji flinched when someone knocked on the door; he moved to open it, slightly curious. No one knew he was in here, so it had to be a visitor for Hinata-but who would be coming to see Hinata?

Neji squeaked and slammed the door shut.

Itachi laughed on the other side and knocked again; this time, Neji opened it and blushed in mortification. "Sorry-it's just, you startled me and I…" Neji trailed off in embarrassment.

Itachi failed to hide his laughter. "It's alright," he chuckled. "I came here to see you anyways."

"You did?" Neji stared in surprise. "I-well then. Why would you want to see me?"

"Why wouldn't I want to see you?" Itachi sounded genuinely surprised.

"Well, since I lied to everyone about-that." Neji fumbled over the words. "I thought that you…oh, I don't know." Neji gazed up at him helplessly.

Itachi shook his head. "I told you this morning, and I haven't changed my mind. I'm not angry with you at all, Neji."

Neji smiled quietly, despite the sinking feeling in his stomach. _ He must not know about the proposal yet._ "I'm glad."

Itachi smiled down at him kindly. "Would you like to walk with me?"

"Oh…um, I'm not sure." Neji fiddled with his sleeves shyly. "I'm not supposed to be running rampant around the palace as of now and um…well…"

Itachi raised an eyebrow. "Well what?"

"Erm…my father probably wouldn't approve," Neji finished lamely.

Itachi chuckled. "On the contrary, your father _does_ approve-I just met with him, and he gave me permission to invite you for a walk."

Neji stilled and searched Itachi's face for any tells-finally, he gave up; Itachi's face was like a stone wall. He would just have to assume that Itachi hadn't been present when Hiashi had made the offer. "Alright, I'll go with you." Neji stepped outside and closed the door behind him. He barely restrained himself from rolling his eyes when he heard a guard falling in step behind them.

"Where are we walking to?"

"I don't know if you ever had the pleasure of actually coming in here while you were serving me, but…" Itachi turned a corner and lead Neji down to a set of thick, stone doors. "The Uchiha have a marvelous greenhouse." Neji sighed in contentment when a rush of heated air fluttered across his frozen face.

His eyes lit up as he feasted on the sight of vibrant green plants and colorful blooms within the greenhouse. "Wow! This is so beautiful," he breathed. He took a few tentative steps forward before glancing back at Itachi.

Itachi grinned at him. "Go on-I'll be right behind you." Reassured, Neji darted forward in to the greenhouse and set off for the nearest row of flowers. He reverently touched the soft, silky petals of an orchid.

He turned around when he heard Itachi's footsteps heading towards him. "Where do you get your flower specimens from?"

"We import them from all over the world," Itachi smirked. "We have some of the best gardeners between the five Great Nations."

"It's so amazing." Neji sighed in contentment-he was warm, he was in a room of beautiful flowers, and he was with Itachi; right now was one of the best moments of his life.

To his surprise, Itachi reached out and deftly plucked the orchid that he had previously been admiring. Neji stilled when Itachi stepped closer, and he couldn't stop the goosebumps rising on his arms from Itachi's close proximity.

"What-"

"Sh," Itachi gently hushed him. Neji closed his eyes when he felt Itachi tuck the beautiful bloom in to his hair.

When Itachi's hand retreated, Neji looked up, his eyes hesitantly searching Itachi's face. When Itachi didn't move, Neji quietly closed the distance between them, and somehow they ended up kissing.

Neji squeezed his eyes shut tightly as he firmly slanted his mouth across Itachi's; Itachi responded by wrapping his arms around Neji's waist and pulling him in as close as possible. Itachi seemed hopeful for something more than an innocent kiss, but Neji wasn't having any of it.

When they finally drew apart, Neji didn't let go of Itachi's shirt, and instead he leaned heavily in to Itachi's chest.

"What was all _that_ about?" Itachi once he'd caught his breath. "I didn't think you'd want to kiss me again after everything that happened."

When Neji didn't say anything, Itachi sighed and gently disentangled Neji's hands from his shirt. "Let's go back-I'm sure your uncle will be expecting you soon."

Neji accepted Itachi's offered arm, and they walked back to Hinata's room in silence. However, just before Neji opened the door to go inside, Neji sweetly kissed Itachi on the cheek.

Itachi opened his mouth to say something, but Neji had already vanished in to his safe haven.

XXX

_Later that evening…_

In the madness that had followed the ball the previous night, Karin had ended up filling in Neji's position as his personal servant.

"Prince Itachi!"

"Yes, Karin?" Itachi looked up from the papers that he was studying.

"King Fugaku would like to see you now."

Itachi instantly put down what he was doing and got up. "Of course. Just give me a moment-could you make some tea, please?"

Karin left, grumbling, and Itachi quickly finished writing his notes before standing up and leaving his study.

"What is it, Father?"

King Fugaku barely looked up from the sheet of paper he had in his hands. "Sit down; I have something very important to discuss with you."

Itachi rolled his eyes and sat down beside him. Fugaku wordlessly handed him the paper and watched in mild amusement as Itachi's eyebrows slowly disappeared further behind his bangs as his eyes scanned down the page.

"This is…" Itachi looked up at his father, scarcely able to believe his eyes.

"It's exactly what you think it is." Fugaku rubbed his forehead with his fingers and sighed deeply. "You know that we have no other choice but to accept it."

"Wait…wait, _what? _Why would you even consider accepting this proposal!" Itachi stared at Fugaku in shock.

"Things are still strained between our kingdoms even though we signed the peace treaty and trade agreements two years ago. This is our best move to smooth things over between the people-come, now, Itachi-you _must_ see it. The people will not be able to _not_ love Neji. He's our best chance," Fugaku pleaded. If Itachi wanted to reject the offer, then Fugaku wouldn't stop him. However, Fugaku was in full favor of going through with the offer, and he had to try and convince his son as well.

"This is a _marriage proposal_," Itachi gritted out. "A marriage proposal between Hyuga Neji and myself; why would this affect the people in any way?"

"The people are in love with you, to put it simply. If you choose to marry this prince, they will all slowly accept that the Hyuga are really alright even though we have traditionally been enemies."

Itachi closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. "This is a political marriage?"

"Unfortunately, yes." Fugaku eyed his son closely; had he been wrong in his assumptions this whole time? "But…I didn't think you would be so against this proposal-I saw how you felt about him at the ball. It was painfully obvious to anyone who was watching that you two have a…deep connection at the very least."

Itachi glared at him; now, of all times, his father decided to meddle with his love life? "It's none of your business."

Fugaku sighed and sat back in his chair. "Take your time thinking about it," he advised. "It's not something to be taken lightly-"

"I'll accept it," Itachi instantly replied. He tossed the paper back at his father and stood up. "Is that all?"

Fugaku hid a smirk; sometimes, his son was _dreadfully_ easy to manipulate. "Are you sure?" he teased. "You understand-you understand that you will have a life-long responsibility to Neji."

Itachi rolled his eyes and huffed; could this get any more embarrassing? "Yes, Father. I understand."

"Oh, very good. Feel free to approach Neji at your leisure." Fugaku stood up and walked out of the room while whistling merrily; things had gone much more smoothly than he'd anticipated.

Itachi groaned and buried his face in his arms. "Karin, I know you were listening. Come on out."

Karin stepped out from his kitchen and stared at him impassively. "I couldn't find the teapot, or any teacups."

Itachi sighed and walked past her in to the kitchen. "How many times have I told you? They're in the top right compartment of this cupboard."

Karin ignored him. "You miss Neji. I get that-but you could please _try_ and be a little more civil? I can guarantee that you never treated Neji like you're treating me right now."

Itachi paused, and then turned around. "You're right-I'm sorry, Karin. I'll…I'll stop taking my feelings out on you."

Karin smiled kindly and patted his shoulder. "Oh, and Itachi-just know, if you _ever_, _ever_ hurt Neji during any point of his time here," Karin cracked her knuckles threateningly, "Konoha will hunt you down and kill you in the most painful way possible."

Itachi chuckled. "Yikes. So, I take it that the gang is in full support of our pairing?"

Karin smirked and left the kitchen, laughing. "Are you kidding? We've approved of it from the very start!"

"But Neji's a Hyuga. I know, for one, that Iruka hates the Hyuga for the murder of his parents." Itachi followed her out.

"Ever since he and Kakashi got together, he's gotten over it," Karin said dismissively. "Don't worry so much, Itachi-we all love Neji for who he is, no matter where he's from: He's just too precious to lose."

Itachi smirked. "Che." He ruffled Karin's hair affectionately before heading back in to his study. "Good night, Karin."

Karin just shook her head and stomped off to her room, her fit of mushy sentimentality having passed.

**a/n:** Ha ha! So now Itachi is in the whole scheme And Karin has a surprisingly sympathetic side hahahaha. Thanks for reading, don't forget to review, and I'll see you next chapter!


	23. Chapter 22

**a/n**: Hey everybody! Sorry it took me forever to update *sigh* It's finals week at my school, so I've been studying like crazy. Anyways, the next chapter of this story will be the last chapter, so THANK YOU ALL for reading and favoriting and reviewing this story! After this, there's just a little bit of resolution left and then this story will be finished. So, onwards to chapter 22! (No warnings, disclaimer on my profile...enjoy!)

Chapter 22

Neji rolled his neck and stared outside longingly; the storm had been pounding down on Kunimitsu City without any signs of stopping for the past three days.

"Neji-nii!" Hinata burst in to the room, her cheeks glowing with a happy blush.

Neji blinked in surprise and sat up on the bed. "What is it?"

"Did you know-Prince Itachi-"

Shikamaru swooped in from behind and clapped his hand firmly over her mouth.

"Prince Itachi did what?" Neji raised an eyebrow. He hadn't seen Itachi since their little make-out session in the greenhouse; he'd assumed that Itachi had better things to do than visit him.

"Prince Itachi met us in the hall and gave us this message for you." Shikamaru cautiously removed his hand from his fiancée's mouth and pulled out a crisp envelope from his jacket.

"Why are you so excited about this?" Neji asked mystified, even as he took the envelope from Shikamaru. "Hinata?"

Hinata opened her mouth, but Shikamaru threw her a warning glance. She closed her mouth, opened it, and then closed it again. Neji shook his head and placed the envelope on the coverlet beside him; it seemed like he wasn't going to get any answers out of the pair.

"What does it say, Nii-san?"

"Why don't you tell me?" When Hinata stuttered, and then quieted down with a sheepish expression, Neji smirked. "You _do_ know what it says then, don't you?"

"Hinata, let's leave Neji so that he can open his little envelope and find out what Itachi had to say," Shikamaru interrupted before Hinata could spill any secrets. Hinata was usually perfect at keeping secrets and a stoic façade, but with her family (and especially her beloved sister, Neji), she had no semblance of control. Grinning, Shikamaru dragged her away before cupping her face with his hands and kissing her. "That was a close one."

Hinata laughed. "Sorry-It's just, it's Neji-nii, and he'll finally be happy and-"

"You're excited, I know. But think about it-how did you feel when you when you found out that my family accepted the marriage proposal?"

"It was…" Hinata thought back to the moment. "It was like an explosion, to be honest. Ino was with me, so…"

"Well, I think that Neji would have liked to find out on his own," Shikamaru explained. "You know, since things are ah…complicated, between Itachi and him."

Hinata's shoulders drooped slightly. "You're right. What was I thinking?" Hinata bit her lip. "Do you think he's mad-"

"No, no!" It was at times like these that Shikamaru disliked being confronted by Hinata's emotional side-with Shikamaru, she completely opened herself up to him, which made her extremely vulnerable. He was still learning how to explain things to her without her bursting in to tears. "I'm just saying, it's a good thing that you decided to make a tactful exit. If anything, after he reads the message, he'll feel happy that you're so happy for him."

"Maybe." Hinata frowned and considered how her cousin would react, and she realized that Shikamaru was right. "Yeah. Wow…thanks Shika. What would I do without you?" She reached up and pulled him down for a kiss.

Shikamaru smiled and patted her head; however, when she turned away, his smile lost all its joy. _What would you do without me?_ He wondered. _You would be happily married to Chouji, who is perfectly capable of ruling the kingdom. Chouji and I would still be best friends, and I probably would've married Ino…maybe even Neji, if we'd found him before now. Instead, here we are-you and I, happily taking our first steps on the road to ruling this kingdom. Now though, Chouji is sitting back in the castle, not speaking to either of us, heart-broken and abandoned by his best friends._

_So, where __**would**__ we be without…this?_

Shikamaru shook his head and lazily strolled forward. Wherever they would be, he was pretty sure that he wouldn't have lost his lone true friend, even if it had meant that Shikamaru would have been lonely himself for the rest of his life.

XXX

Meanwhile, the moment Shikamaru and Hinata had left, Neji had snatched up the envelope and slitted the top open.

He carefully pulled out the writing inside and began to read it over. It was only a few short lines, but when Neji was finished reading, he stared off in to the distance for a few minutes.

Itachi had accepted the proposal. Neji involuntarily curled in on himself; what would happen to him now?

Someone knocked on the doorframe, and Neji jolted in surprise. His father smiled at him from the corridor. "May I come in?"

Neji shifted and immediately folded the letter shut. "Sure."

Hiashi's eyebrows went up when he saw what Neji was hastily tucking away. "Ah…I'd been hoping to get here before Shikamaru and Hinata."

"It's alright." Neji shifted and sighed. "I wasn't really sure what to expect-although I certainly didn't think that they'd respond this soon."

"Well, we need this alliance badly." Hiashi shifted uncomfortably before continuing. "Your obvious…attraction towards each other was also quite obvious."

Neji flushed. "I-it was, wasn't it?" _Everyone's been saying that lately._

Hiashi chuckled. "I can't quite say that it was like that between your mother and I," he admitted. "At first, at least. We eventually grew to love each other after a bit though."

Neji smiled quietly. "Is that right?"

Hiashi smiled and shook his head. "Enough about me! You, Neji, will become a bride shortly." He reached over and took Neji's hands in his, in a comforting gesture. "I know…your mother can't help you now, but if you ever have any questions, you can come find me."

"Yeah." Neji squeezed his father's hands gratefully. "Thanks." He held back a shudder; he was still horribly uncomfortable with physical contact around his father.

"Alright." Hiashi stood up and made his way back to the corridor. However, just before he was about to go, he paused. "Neji…"

Neji looked up from where he had been recovering the paper from its envelope. "Yes?"

"I've decided to lighten up on you. You won't have a guard follow you everywhere, and you may wander around the palace, the same as any visitor to the Uchiha. However, you _must_ be back in this room by ten o'clock at night, and you may not leave again until seven in the morning. Do you understand?"

"Yes father." Neji's heart beat slightly faster; he wasn't confined to these dreary stone walls anymore!

"Oh, and Neji; if you decide to you would like to make out with your fiancé, try not do so in a room with glass windows." Hiashi winked at his daughter and left the room while Neji spluttered.

"Did everyone see that?" he wondered aloud.

"Did everyone see what?"

Neji shrieked and fell off the bed. He knelt on the floor, gasping for breath. "Don't _do_ that!"

Itachi raised an eyebrow and walked forward to help Neji back to his feet. "Scared much?"

"You keep sneaking up on me," Neji accused him.

"Perhaps you're just oblivious to your surroundings."

Neji huffed before his eyes fell on the envelope on his bed; suddenly, he felt extremely shy and awkward. "Um…"

Itachi followed his eyes to the bedspread. "Oh. So you heard."

"Yeah." Neji squeaked in surprise when Itachi pulled him forward in to a harsh embrace. "Itachi-mmm. Mmmm…" Neji didn't even bother trying to speak when Itachi started kissing him.

Eventually, the kiss tapered out and they broke apart. Suddenly, Itachi started laughing. When Neji looked at him questioningly, he managed to sober down enough to respond. "Now that _that's_ all finished, all we have to do is tell Konoha!"

At this, Neji instantly tensed up and shifted backwards. "Oh…"

Itachi frowned. "What's the matter? Do you _not_ want to tell them?"

"It's not that I don't want to tell them; it's that, I don't think they're very happy with me right now," Neji mumbled. "Me being a Hyuga and all."

Itachi shook his head and rubbed Neji's back soothingly. "I actually don't think that's the case."

Neji didn't look convinced, but he nodded anyways. "Whatever you say."

"We should go now. Most people are eating in the kitchen." Itachi took Neji's hand, and they started down the corridor together.

Neji tried to crush the insecurity welling up inside his chest; he still didn't think this was a very good idea, but he had a feeling that Itachi had his mind set on telling everyone right away.

When they entered the kitchen, Neji's eyes fell first on Iruka. Then, he raised an eyebrow when he noticed Iruka's content expression as he sat chattering animatedly at Kakashi whose nose was buried in a book as usual.

Barely five seconds later, everyone had noticed the pair, and the entire kitchen fell silent. Neji flushed, but decided that if there was ever a time to apologize, it was now.

"I'm sorry for deceiving you all," he said clearly. He bowed low, and then straightened up, his head low in shame. "I'm sorry."

There was a tense silence for a moment, and then it was broken by a chorus of loud scoldings. "You idiot!" His friends crowded around him and all began talking at once. "Not mad-precious-it's ok-_stupid_…" Neji felt his ears ringing from the cacophony of noise. Finally, Kushina managed to shove all the others out of the way, effectively shutting them up, before settling her fists on her hips. "Neji. It's ok. We love you, even though you lied to us. It doesn't matter if what family you're from-it's really just _you_ that we care about. I mean, there's not really much for you to apologize for-you came in here like any honest person, worked hard, and stayed on the right side of the law. It's not like you took advantage of us or something crazy like that," Kushina laughed. "It's alright honey. It's ok." She reached out and pulled Neji in to a hug; the two friends weren't quite sure how long they stood like that, but eventually, they broke apart and Neji was swallowed up by a sea of hugs and congratulations once Itachi had told everyone about the upcoming engagement.

Neji was surprised when Iruka patted him somewhat gingerly on the back; he hadn't expected anything from the man, and he was extremely grateful that they were still speaking.

Eventually, Neji returned to Itachi's side where he allowed Itachi to slip his arm around his waist. He smiled as he watched the gang return to their food; this felt right. Kunimitsu City, and the Uchiha Castle were his real home now. Neji frowned slightly as a sudden thought occurred to him: He also knew, then and there, that no place where his father could stay would be home for him ever again.

**a/n**: A little bit of an ominous ending there, I know. Well, anyways, stay tuned for the final chapter of the story, don't forget to review, and thanks for reading! ;)


	24. Epilogue

**a/n**: Hey everybody! So…this is the last chapter of _Thousand Furs_. I want to say thank you all for reading, and it has been a very fun venture for me! Unfortunately, there are some lose ends left in the story, so I apologize for the abruptness of this ending. Hopefully, it is still to your liking, and someday I can come back and edit it without getting bored or destroying the entire plot line. Onwards to the epilogue!

Epilogue

_Four months later…_

Neji smiled politely and quickly withdrew his hand from Orochimaru's cold grasp. "I'm so glad you could make it, Orochimaru-san. I'd heard that you've been ill recently."

The snake man smiled blandly. "It's true I haven't been feeling well, but I simply couldn't miss this hissstoric event," he hissed. "A happy marriage to both of you."

Neji smiled politely, and Orochimaru slithered off, no doubt in search of his former student. Meanwhile, Itachi reached over and kissed his knuckles. "Better?"

Neji couldn't help but laugh. "Very much so, thank you." So many things had happened ever since Itachi had accepted the marriage proposal four months ago-after they'd received the ok from their parents and the gang, Neji and Itachi had both been sucked in to a whirl of marriage preparations, and Neji had also been reunited with many of the occupants of the Hyuga Castle during the time. Now, he and Itachi were greeting all (or well, most) of their wedding guests at their post-wedding reception. Neji let his gaze wander out across the hall when his eyes fell upon an approaching couple.

"_Haku?_"

"Neji!" Haku grinned at him and pulled him over for a hug. "It's been a while."

Neji laughed giddily; Haku had meant a lot to him, and after his father had found him again, he'd restarted their correspondence. However, they hadn't been able to meet in person, and Haku most assuredly hadn't told him that he would be paying a visit to Kunimitsu City. They talked for a bit more, but more guests began pressing for a word with Neji, and Haku left with the promise of meeting again over tea. Neji smiled softly at the happy expression on his friend's face as Haku clung to Zabuza's arm.

Itachi brushed his fingers of Neji's hand, and Neji jolted back to the present before smiling warmly at the next guest. "Chouji-kun! I was so worried when you sent word that you had some difficulty crossing the border."

"We had to wait for the weather to clear up a bit," Chouji shrugged. "It was no big deal."

Neji's face fell slightly. "…But still, Chouji. All of us were worried-especially Hinata-sama."

Chouji's shoulders drooped slightly, but his eyes regarded Neji with slightly more warmth. "Well, I'm alright now, so don't worry your pretty little head. After all, you've got other things to worry about, right?" Chouji winked at Neji before disappearing in to the crowd.

Neji just rolled his eyes, but inwardly, he was happy that he could cheer his old friend up a bit. He turned back to Itachi and intertwined their hands again before smiling politely at one of Itachi's uncles. Now he understood why, when he'd looked back at the picture of his mother and father at their own wedding, his mother had had such a pained expression on her face. It was well in to the evening, and they hadn't even gone through of half of their esteemed visitors.

XXX

Later, Neji cuddled closer in to Itachi's embrace before settling down and listening to the rowdy celebrations outside of the palace. As it turned out, the citizens of the land of the Uchiha were more than ready for peace between the two kingdoms, and their marriage had been received fairly well across the country. Neji winced as fireworks boomed overhead-he had never been a huge fan of the sparkling light displays; they always hurt his ears.

Itachi stroked his hair soothingly. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, thanks." Neji laid his cheek against the firm muscle on Itachi's chest-he enjoyed listening to the rumbling vibrations that spread through Itachi's body when he talked.

"You know, your story is quite a tale." Itachi shifted slightly, and Neji responded by draping himself over Itachi's torso. "I'm sure that street minstrels have already started coming up with tunes for your song."

Neji groaned and buried his face in Itachi's shoulder. "I'm sure they've exaggerated it to the point where none of its true anymore," he muttered. "I wouldn't want a song about my life anyways. It's not very interesting."

Itachi snorted. "Love, you're like any one of the great heroes. You escaped from a bad situation, you ventured across the woods and almost died, and then you came here and fell in love. What's not to like about that? You have to admit, its perfect song material."

Neji just shook his head and chose to change the subject. "You know what's good song material? You."

Itachi raised an eyebrow in the dark. "Me?"

"Yes, you." Neji sighed without realizing it. "It's not as if you haven't had an interesting childhood either."

Itachi snorted; he'd been a commander in the military at the age of nine. "Touché."

"I wouldn't write about that, though." Neji smiled in the dark when he felt Itachi tense around him. "I'd rather write about how beautiful you are." Neji started tracing his finger across Itachi's face.

He laughed when Itachi chuckled before leaning down for a kiss.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

The prince and the princess settled back down and fell asleep, entwined in the arms of they loved most in the world…just like two sleeping children, hiding from the dark, wandering in the bright dreams of a beautiful, lovely fairytale.

_Fin_

**a/n**: So…happy holidays folks! Thank you all for reading, reviewing, and supporting this story. I'm sad to see it go, but unfortunately, everything must come to an end. I've also recently written another piece called 'closure' for all of the Naruto readers who are currently up to date with what's happened; if you are, you should go check it out and leave a review!

Anyways, thank you very much for staying with this story, and I hope y'all are having a lovely holiday season. Happy new year, stay safe, and hopefully we'll meet again in a new story!

-itanejiluver-


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